Gone Wrong
by The Crimson Wing
Summary: A gesture of kindness from Lee on Gaara's birthday goes horribly, horribly wrong. How will Gaara deal with being a...raccoon?
1. A Prelude to Disaster

**Authors Note:** Whilst doing the dishes, I had this mental image of a small cat, representative of my OC, curled up atop Lee's head. That image slowly turned into a pouting raccoon and this was born. Enjoy

Oh…and this is AU…ish. The Akatsuki incident HAPPENED, but it didn't…really… go through? … I can't elaborate or I'll spoil things, but it's AU! .

**Warnings:** Uhhhhhhhhh… Kimimaro and above. Yes, that about sums it up…not that we go into full graphic detail, but it's mentioned. Oh yes, and GaaraLee love eventually ;x

**Disclaimer:** No Naruto characters belong to me. I own my brain, my Naruto shirts, other various nerd stuff, and a few OC's. No, you can't have them. Boo on you.

* * *

_Gone Wrong Chapter One: A Prelude to Disaster_

January Nineteenth.

Sabaku no Gaara, Kazekage, sat in the vast home he shared with his older siblings Kankuro and Temari, wondering if this was really how people celebrated their being born; their very existence. If so, he'd been doing something horribly wrong the first twenty years of his life, first going on killing sprees, then barricading himself beneath mountains of work.

Temari stood, grinning happily with a present thrust out before her wrapped in golden, shiny paper. It was eerie how she could be so happy now when, just nine years before, she had willed nothing more then for him to disappear from the planet's surface.

On the other hand, Gaara would take her boundless cheer any day to the funny look Kankuro was giving him. It was mixed somewhere between happiness, the usual sneer, and a good dosage of what they politely deemed 'insanity'.

"Happy Birthday Gaara!" Temari chirped.

"Yeah little bro, you're twenty-one now." Kankuro shook his head, reaching over to ruffle the red head's hair before pushing his own sandy locks back. "Makes me feel old."

A twitch flickered over Temari's features before she slapped Kankuro with a scowl. "You? Old? Then imagine how I feel!"

"I didn't mean it that way," whined the puppet master. Playful, very sibling-like glances were exchanged before their attention returned to Gaara.

Damn.

"So," Temari said eagerly, "Open your presents!"

Gaara's eyes rolled. Half of the gifts were from admiring girls, a quarter from kiss-up landowners, an eighth from council members desiring re-election, and an eighth from people he didn't even know how to label. So he instead focused on the parcel in his hands, peeling back the gold wrapping neatly and pulling open the top.

He blinked. A non-existent eyebrow arched.

…Cookies. Not that he was complaining, it was just…Interesting.

"Thank you Temari." The words 'thank you' were still rusty, but had begun to come out more easily. His older sister beamed.

Kankuro thrust a gift to his brother, looking a little uncomfortable. "Here squirt."

Calling the Kazekage 'squirt' would be dangerous to most anymore. But this was his brother, whom he grudgingly looked up to, so Gaara only rolled his eyes for what felt like the hundredth time. Besides, he was still pretty short.

More paper, this time purple, was peeled back. Box opened, obligatory thank you all ready building…

Only to vanish. Something like awe threatened in Gaara's vision as his small hands slipped inside the box, pulling out a marionette of a raccoon. It was carefully painted and polished to perfection, the joints all working in harmony as Gaara pulled on small strings.

"Thank you Kankuro," he responded after some time. The gift was lain carefully in the box, which was then settled beside Temari's on the floor. Teal eyes rose, "Thanks to both of you."

Kankuro, knowing his brother was uncomfortable in the first place, knew better then to smother the young Kazekage in affection. "Yeah, yeah…" Besides, he was Kankuro with an image to uphold. Hugs, even manly or brotherly ones, were rare.

To restrain herself from pulling her brothers into an embrace, Temari gestured to the gifts piled by the entryway. "So, let's start on those."

On the inside, in the part of him that hated all other living creatures, Gaara growled. These people were not worth his time! But he shoved that down and gave a bare nod. These were his people after all, no matter how disturbing and worshipping they could be at times.

Then, a knock on the door, three rapid strikes that seemed to resonate with a vibrant energy. Temari and Kankuro exchanged curious glances before the female walked from the room and down the small hall to the doorway.

Whilst he examined a peculiar shaped gift, Gaara heard his sister's startled 'oh'. Then a thunderous voice cut through the silence, loud and excited.

"Good morning Temari-san! I have heard that on this glorious day, twenty-one years ago, my good friend Gaara was brought into the world!"

Gaara's gaze rose at this. There were two people in the world that spoke like that and he sincerely doubted that the obnoxious Maito Gai would show up on his birthday and call him a good friend, which could only mean…

"It is fortunate that Gai-sensei's birthday was eighteen days before or else I may never have found out about such a wonderful occasion!"

Yes, it was most definitely not Gai. Unless he started referring to himself in the third person and had changed his voice to be less 'manly' to stop scaring small children. Then again, Gaara wouldn't put it past the man…

"Err, right…" He heard Temari mumble. The door shut and she returned, gesturing behind her. "Gaara, the obnox…" She faltered that line of speech at a dark look, "…the _youthful_ Rock Lee is here."

"Gaara-kun!" Chirped Lee from just behind Temari.

Both of the Kazekage's non-existent eyebrows shot up to find the green beast in shorts. Still a part of the green jumpsuit, still with legwarmers, but they were shorts either way. Not that he had ever cared about what Lee wore, appearance mattered little to Gaara, it was just unusual.

"Lee," Gaara responded calmly. Teal eyes swiveled to a misshapen package held halfway behind the Green Beast's back. Another present.

As if sensing that his not-quite-concealed package was the object of the sand leader's attention, Lee withdrew the package and, after a confirming nod from Temari, started across the room. He crouched before the red head and extended it, a real smile curving his face. It took a moment for Gaara to take the package as the look from Lee was rare, usually masked by 'good guy' poses and pinging teeth.

"Happy birthday Gaara-kun." He stood straight again, stepping back and clasping his hands behind him. "This is from all of we in Konoha." As an afterthought he added, "Naruto also tucked something in there before it was entirely wrapped, so anything inappropriate…"

Lee trailed off as Gaara ripped open the last piece of paper hiding his gift. An assortment of materials was contained in a box: shuriken, kunai, poisons, antidotes, pens. Atop this was a dagger, hilt encrusted with rubies, the blade made of what Gaara nonchalantly informed Lee to be diamond.

Set apart from all of this was a small statue, about the size of a house cat. It was, naturally, a raccoon, but unlike Kankuro's that resembled nothing of the demon lying inside of Gaara, this was an eerily similar replica.

Both Gaara and Lee stared at it uneasily. Kankuro actually flinched a step backwards, Temari grimacing and averting her gaze.

"How thoughtful," Lee said. There was but a weak exclamation to the remark. Though he had never officially seen the full sized Shukaku, he had felt a piece of the power during his battle with Kimimaro and again when he'd gone to Sunagakure to 'return the favor'. While colorful and loud, Lee was not dense and knew the omen behind the statue did not bode well. Stubborn? Yes. Determined? Definitely. But not near that level of idiocy.

Gaara's gaze rose to find Lee looking a little confused, resembling how he felt. Why would Naruto send something like this? He would have to inquire as to what the purpose was when he next saw the Kyuubi vessel, but for now he had Lee.

"Thank you," Gaara said. The words tasted odd still but he managed and Lee's responding smile was well worth it.

"Of course Gaara-kun!" Some of the usual enthusiasm was returning and while Kankuro and Temari looked as if they wished it hadn't, it brought a little comfort to the Jinchuuriki holder. Lee reached back to a little pack on his back. "I have something for-"

BANG.

The Shukaku statue released a burst of energy and light and all Gaara registered was Lee's scream of, "GAARA-KUN!" A split second later, agony like he'd only felt when the one tail had been removed was sheering through the young Kazekage's body and he was screaming as loudly as he possibly could. Only, no sound was emitting from his being and he found the piece of himself that was Gaara being ripped from his body as easily as a sheet from a bed, spiraling round and round, faster and faster, until Gaara could see nothing.

And then, abruptly, it stopped. Vision was slowly returning to Gaara, but tendrils of dark unconsciousness were clouding about the edges before even that was fully restored. Panic overtook him; if he fell unconscious, Shukaku would take control! But he was too far gone and the last waking thought the Kazekage had was,

_'Why is everything so big?' _

**-Owari-**

* * *

;x Doom has been established upon our Kazekage. Hehhehheh… Review! It will make the authoress happy and maybe even have the inspiration to type up the next chapter…which she all ready has written.

-Crimson Wing


	2. Doomsday

**Author's Note-** Whoot. I got an 'overwhelming' response to the first chapter (more like it fell flat on its face), but I have deemed it worth while to keep moving…to show that I CAN keep focus on one project at a time…. Oh look, a fairy…

**Disclaimer**- Not. Mine. Well, except the character Crimson. She's mine…yeah, but that's about it…Wish I owned Gaara or Lee or Kankuro or Itachi or…. -Rambles-

* * *

**Gone Wrong**

_Chapter Two: Doomsday_

Muffled shuffling noises greeted Gaara upon awakening. He opened his eyes and immediately was hit with the notion that something was _very_ wrong. And it wasn't just the fact that he couldn't feel Shukaku pressing against the barriers of his will anymore either, though that certainly was part of it.

Hastily he attempted to sit up, but found the motion feeling awkward and overly sluggish from his disorientation. Fur, thick and black, obscured his vision and he rose a paw to push it from view.

Wait a minute. Fur? PAW?

Blind panic was not something Gaara had felt more then twice in his life. It was such a raw, urgent emotion that he had trouble feeling it, even in times when he really needed to. But he was definitely feeling it then. In a spurt of energy he bounced to his feet, but having four paws was new and difficult for the Kazekage and he ended up sprawled on his side, heart pounding furiously in his chest. One leg spasmed, tongue lolling out, his gaze darting around…

To meet a pair of brilliant green eyes.

Had he the voice to, Gaara probably would have screamed, but as it were he did not so instead he yelped. On instinct he lunged upwards to bite, claw, rip, maim, and destroy, that which had disturbed his peace, if it could be called that. But the gaze leaned backwards and he only ended up flat on his belly, covered in white sheets.

"Calm down Gaara-sama," came a highly amused female voice, "I wouldn't _dream_ of tormenting you in this form, animals are hellish to put up with."

That voice. He knew that voice, but from where?

Slowly Gaara managed to push himself into a sitting position, paws settled on the bed before him to keep balance. He realized then that he was not in some kind of containment cell but the hospital, which served as only partial relief. He hated doctors… Before him stood Crimson Kirihara, one of his advisors and a top medical assistant of the hospital. She was a red head herself with brilliant green eyes and…cat ears. But none of that mattered, what mattered was that she help him get back to normal.

"There," she chuckled, shook her head, and leaned down to rummage in the bag she always carried with her, "We need you to be at least slightly calm. Lee-san is out there having kittens." The woman straightened, holding up a mirror, "Considering what's happened, I can see why."

Having been emotionally stunted most of his life, as a matter of fact all of it would be the proper saying, it had been easy for Gaara to slip back into his state of calmness. He had accepted the fact that something bizarre was going on and that he was in the shape of what he would assume to be a raccoon. Seeing the full view in the mirror staring back at him however was nearly reason enough to have another fit.

The body he inhabited was indeed of the variety he assumed and largely gray. Stripes lined his tail, thick and black like they were delicately painted on, and the obligatory mask covered muzzle and around his eyes. His eyes seemed to be the only thing that was left of his original form; still a soft lighted aqua. Not that it mattered much; he was still a raccoon, helpless to defend his people.

Had he been able to, Gaara would have scowled, but he was an animal and the effect was far too minimal to be pleasing. As it was, he was a raccoon, so instead he growled.

He deemed it nearly as satisfying.

"So, there we are." When Gaara huffed and looked away from the mirror, Crimson put it away. "Here's where we stand. Your human body lies dormant in another room. According to Lee-san, after the statue burst you refused to wake up. Lucky for you, Kankuro-kun seemed to have noticed his birthday present's sudden furriness and brought you along with the body."

A paw brushed languidly over Gaara's nose, an exasperated whine rumbling in his chest. So the statue really had been a bad omen. Naruto would pay dearly for this, that was assured. But what to do about the body? He couldn't very well run around like this forever. Could he still manipulate sand?

The obvious answer was to get Tsunade on the case. This was her last year as Hokage before Naruto stepped in and Gaara would be DAMNED if he'd let their alliance slack off just so she could have an easy last year. Crimson seemed to be thinking along the same lines as she was scribbling down something on a notepad.

"Shall I inform Lee-san of his dear 'Gaara-kun's whereabouts?"

Gaara sent an angry glare at the female. If Lee found out he would raise all hell (well, more so) and nothing would get done.

Crimson sighed. "I'll take that as a no. Well, come on then." She went to the door and held it open for the dog-sized Kazekage, "Let's go break the news."

Several strange looks were case on Crimson as she exited with a raccoon, but they were ignored by both parties. When had either of them not received looks? Down the hall Lee was pacing like an expectant father, nibbling on his lower lip. Temari and Kankuro seemed relatively more calm, sitting in chairs watching him, but shot up when Crimson arrived.

"What's wrong with him, what can we do?"

"Should I kill the Kyuubi brat?"

"WHY MUST YOUTH BE SO CRUEL?!"

Politely ignoring Lee's outburst, Crimson gestured to the room that lay to her left. "Please, shinobi villages have ears."

Kankuro jerked open the door impatiently, ushering doctor, sibling, and hysterical friend inside. He didn't notice the raccoon, shutting the door so quickly that it snubbed the muzzle.

"So?" The puppet master growled, oblivious to the fact that he had a very angry Kazekage outside the door. His knuckles were white with fists clenched, his being radiating an intense desire to hit something.

Sighing, Crimson reached out and drew the tensed male to her side, running slightly clawed nails down his spine. "Breathe," she admonished with a chiding smile. Then she turned her attention to Temari, fingers playing up and down his spine more slowly, calming the intense shaking of the furious puppet master. "Gaara-sama is fine, this state was brought on by the statue and he's not dead."

Lee made a distinct noise. He'd calmed from hysterics, the guilt and melancholy bringing seriousness to his expression.

"How do we fix it?" Temari inquired. On the outside she was collected, but her inside was quaking with fear for her brother. Her gaze was drawn to her little brother's body on the bed. "And what of Shukaku?"

The mention of the demon sent a shiver through the room. Solemnly Crimson shook her head. "I don't know how to fix it. For that we should ask the Godaime Hokage. As for Shukaku, I will need to run a few more tests."

There was a scratching at the door and the handle began to twist and wiggle, but so tense was the atmosphere in the room that no one noticed.

The green beast rose a fist to his face, breaking the tension, nodding once before he held out his thumb in the undeniable good guy pose, altered slightly due to the severity of the situation. "I shall return to Konoha at once and request Tsunade-sama's aid!"

Behind them the door popped open and a highly annoyed Raccoon Gaara pranced in, nipping at Kankuro's leg irritably before using the bed to spring to Lee's shoulder. Temari and Lee looked confused but Kankuro's eyes widened in astonishment.

"Ah yes, this raccoon's name is Sabaku. He will accompany you to Konoha, Lee." Crimson crossed the room and leaned over a bit to level gazes with Gaara. "He should be of some help." She held up a palm, filled with sand, and something strange happened.

It formed a gourd on his back.

'So I can use sand.' Gaara mused absently. The weight resting on him was comforting in a way, so he didn't protest or jerk away when Crimson ran a finger between his ears in farewell. Just glared.

"Take this with you," Crimson took the Shukaku statue from Kankuro and spun Lee around to put it in his pack. "It may help Tsunade-sama."

"Right."

For a moment the cat woman looked at the contents of Lee's bag before she shook her head and stuffed the statue within, remembering that it was none of her business. Even if she really wanted it to be. That accomplished, Lee turned to stare awkwardly at them all, feeling an immense weight on his shoulders. But it was his to bare, he had helped cause this mess by delivering such a gift, he had to fix it.

"Well…farewell!"

Temari nodded, urgency to her voice. "Hurry."

Kankuro took hold of the Green Beast's arm. "Take care of my brother."

Confusion lit Lee's features, but the request was solemn and heartfelt so he dare not spoil the moment. He applied the saying to 'we need help fast, for Gaara's sake' and nodded.

"You have my word. I will do anything within my power to aid my precious person."

Then he was gone. Temari looked quizzically to Crimson as some sort of comprehension dawned on Kankuro. The advisor smirked and turned away to look out the window. "So if Shukaku changed Gaara's insides, what would you think about naming one of their kids after me?"

As the pieces she'd missed filled in and Temari looked horrified, Kankuro flushed red. "Crimson!"

It was hard to look innocent when you were grinning evilly, but Crimson attempted with a shrug. "Just a thought."

**Owari**

* * *

Chkaaah! Let the battles begin! 


	3. White Flag

**Authors Note:** …I'm doing this so fast! Then again, I suppose if I don't I'll lose my inspiration and it will just die. I don't want to do that to those readers that were good enough to review. Thanks very much to Galance for inadvertently making my writer's block go away and for a very awesome review. Mew!

It's difficult writing Gaara. It's even more difficult writing Gaara as a Kazekage RACCOON. Thanks for any and all support.

**Disclaimer:** Ahhh, if only it were mine… -Demented smirk- Unfortunately, it's not…

* * *

**Gone Wrong**

_Chapter Three: White Flag_

When the pair headed out of Sunagakure, Gaara clinging to Lee's shoulder for dear life, the Kazekage had wondered how long it would take to reach the leaf village. He had seen Lee's speed before and after the Chunin exams (he cringed ever so slightly at the thought) and realized it was nothing to scoff at. Being on the receiving end of that speed was no picnic, he'd had bruises to prove it and considering who he was… But it had been a long time since he'd seen the Green Beast's stamina, unimpeded by injuries and the like.

Seconds after they exited the gates and Lee was forced to hold Gaara in his arms to keep him from flying away, those wonderings were put to rest, though the idle curiosity of how fast he would be without weights still lingered. Sand dunes, cast in shadow by the setting sun, trembled in the wake of such speed, yet the dust kicked up was barely registered so light and quick were the steps of Rock Lee.

Darkness fell and the chill of night came. Soon Gaara was buried in the sanctuary of Lee's chest and forearm, paws over his muzzle, legs tucked close to his body. Such close physical contact was strange, nearly frightening to the shunned Jinchuuriki vessel, but he endured for the warmth. Besides, the thought that it was Lee carrying him was oddly comforting, even as it was strange, and managed to still some of the long harbored fears nestled within Gaara.

Hours passed and Lee had not yet slowed. The rapid thuds of his heart had increased dramatically as time wore on, beads of sweat breaking out on his bowl cut brow. Gaara realized with some shock (and a lot of squinting at blurred shapes) that they were halfway to Fire country. He also recalled that it was just that same day Lee had arrived in Suna.

A twinge of possessiveness caught him and the raccoon Kazekage wriggled with discontent. The small gourd on his back reacted to this emotion and lashed out at Lee, just hard enough to make the leaf shinobi stop.

Lee looked down to the shocking teal eyes, panting softly for breath. His lips curved into a smile and he pushed sweaty black bangs from his eyes before he spoke.

"Hey…Sabaku was it?" Gaara inclined his muzzle imperiously and Lee chuckled. "Indeed you do remind me of Gaara-kun. Are you tired perhaps?"

Restlessly Gaara stirred, placing his paws on Lee's shoulder to balance. It wasn't as if he could say 'you're going to kill yourself. Rest', but he had to get across the point. Lee seemed to get along well with animals, so maybe even in this state he would understand.

Teal eyes clashed on black, narrowed fiercely in the best glare Gaara could muster as a raccoon. Lee seemed taken aback by this.

"That is just the same look Gaara-kun gives me when he believes I am overdoing things." He hesitated. "Well Sabaku, I suppose I shall take your word for it."

The pack slipped to the ground, Lee directly after it. He stretched his legs for a few minutes to keep them from cramping before he carefully settled his forearms so Gaara could stand on them, letting out a yawn and tilting his head back. To Gaara, even clad in thick fur, the night was cold. Lee shivered. Apparently he agreed.

But the Green Beast didn't complain, only pulled out a small blanket from his pack and flung it out over him. The material, while thin and easily folded, was snug and comfortable against the sensitive pads of Gaara's paws. Lee tucked it as a sort of cocoon around his legs, curling in around himself a bit before he lay back on the sand, snapping on some goggles he had also removed from his pack.

Gaara eyed him for a moment before the instinct for warmth overcame paranoia, the will for comfort that was Lee over the fear that was physical contact. He curled against the rock hard scrunched abdomen and closed his eyes. The blanket was pulled up over Lee's head.

And for the first time in forever, Sabaku no Gaara really slept, no fear of Shukaku lingering in his mind, no barriers to hold. Only sleep.

Hours later, with dawn peering in through the tightly knit fabric, Gaara woke. He was alone beneath the blanket, but the flutter of life directly next to him signaled Lee only inches away. Lazily he crawled out, stretching his forepaws and hind legs, looking to the shinobi.

Lee, with sand matted to…well, everything, grinned. "Good morning Sabaku."

Omnivorous fangs bared as Gaara yawned. The effects of sleep were still heavy upon him, but he cared not to overanalyze things at that particular moment, instead addressing the rumble of his gut. He stared at Lee openly for a moment, which certainly got the leaf shinobi's attention.

"Ah, yes." He pulled a green apple from the pack and tossed it to Gaara who sat back and caught it easily in his front paws. From the pack he withdrew a tiny saucer and a bottle of water, pouring in some of the clear liquid before sliding it to the raccoon, who immediately went to work on drinking.

Lee chuckled.

"Truly a desert creature," he mused, taking a bite of his shinobi ration bar.

Gaara eyed his companion in silence, pawing sand from his apple before he stated in. Lee looked worn out from all the work he'd been doing. Then again, the Kazekage reflected, the Green Beast seemed to shimmer with fresh energy, like he had been reborn.

And his condition had looked a lot worse in the past.

Minutes later and Lee was up, stretching his muscles, doing a few experimental kicks and punches before he gathered together the morning's spoils. Gaara climbed up onto the Green Beast's shoulder, bushy tail swaying, sand reforming its gourd that had fallen during slumber. Then they were off again.

The day and another night slipped by.

An hour before noon and Wind country faded to Fire country, desert to trees. Lee bound eagerly forth through the tree tops, happy to return to the environment he called home.

By six they had reached Konoha's gates. This shocked Gaara; hadn't it only been two days? But sure enough the friendly smiles of the leaf greeted Lee when they entered, the Hokage tower looming large ahead of them.

As they went through the streets, Gaara noticed people who he knew. That lazy nin who had fought against his sister, the 'large boned boy' who had been hospitalized when the sound five had arrived, the dog boy with the annoying attitude. Various others passed by, but the Kazekage deemed it all right to block them out, settling his sights up to the tower that loomed ever nearer.

That is, until a very familiar presence brushed by. He'd ignored Lee's greetings this entire time, but this one he caught with sharp clarity, "Sasuke-kun." His back went rigid and his eyes snapped to the side, narrowing upon seeing Uchiha Sasuke. He could have growled, but he did not. In his current state he would be nothing against the Uchiha, which infuriated him more then it should have. He hated the feeling of being weak.

Sasuke raised a hand as he walked away, in greeting and farewell. "Sorry Lee, Naruto's whining about something and our neighbors want him to shut up, I'm going to check it out."

'Our'? Gaara looked to Lee to see if he was just as confused as that statement had made him, but Lee was smiling. This irked him, so he pawed at the Green Beast's face, snapping him back from whatever thought he'd been having.

"He and Naruto-kun are engaged and living together in an apartment," he filled in happily. He seemed like he wanted to add more, but thought better of it and shook his head, hurrying on through the crowd.

Naruto with the one whom had hurt him time and again, hm? Gaara let out a little noise that could have been passed as a sigh. In general they hadn't talked about Sasuke in the few letters they sent back and forth, so he hadn't gotten any idea of the blonde's love for the other. Well, except when he'd come to rescue his friends during the Chunin exams.

Ugh. He really needed to stop thinking about that.

Finally they reached the tower. Inwardly Gaara reflected that it felt as if that journey had taken much longer then the run, but he made no outward signs of the effect that left on him only stared straight ahead. The teal gaze fluttered around the room, taking in artifacts and drowning out Lee's words, but not the voice. He liked Lee's voice.

Then they were off, going up the tower. Within a minute they were standing before the doors to the Hokage's office and Lee had knocked.

"Enter!"

Lee pushed open one of the doors and stood at attention there, face all seriousness. Gaara hopped from the Green Beast's shoulder and pulled himself onto the desk piled with papers, staring at the Godaime Hokage. She paid him no mind, apparently used to Lee's 'animal friends'.

"Tsunade-sama," Lee said, voice all respect for the leader of his village, "Our Kazekage has urgent need of your most wise assistance!"

After a brief nod from Tsunade, Shizune stepped forward, looking expectant. Quickly Lee pulled off his bag and removed the statue, the letter that Crimson had written taped to the side. The assistant took it and went quickly back to Tsunade, who gave her an expectant look, one that Shizune gave a proud nod to before slipping from the office.

The Sannin carefully opened the letter, gaze skimming the contents, murmuring the key parts. 'Statue, trapped Kazekage, reverse effects…'

Then, she nodded. Her gaze swiveled up to Lee who still stood at attention. "This will require a few days to look into Lee. You shall rest here tonight, then take a team that I have assembled to Sunagakure to watch over the Kazekage's body, understood?"

"Hai Tsunade-sama!"

The door popped open behind him and Shizune entered, carrying at least ten books. She set them down at Tsunade's side, face a little flushed, and nodded to Lee with a small smile.

Quickly Gaara pranced after Lee, who turned and opened the door. They exited, but stopped abruptly again.

"Gai sensei?" Lee said very quietly. The man was pinned to a wall by Kakashi, who seemed to be doing his best not to snicker evilly. The young Green Beast's voice broke this trance though and the Copy nin slipped his nonchalant mask back into place as he stepped away, pulling out his book to scowl behind.

"Lee!" Gai boomed. Somewhere outside a child began to wail in terror of such manliness.

Gaara had never officially seen Gai and Lee together without battle involved, save on the few occasions that the older would come with the younger to visit him. But in that time they had never been separate from each other. Now they had.

The Kazekage gaped and stared.

Gai and Lee had embraced both crying rather dramatically. A brilliant sunset seemed to shimmer behind them, ocean spray cascading over their forms basked in red and orange.

"You can stop with the theatrics now," Kakashi called from over his book.

That effectively snapped the raccoon Kazekage from his stupor, as well as the pair of sobbing men. Gai scowled as he straightened, turning a glare back on Kakashi who seemed rather pleased with himself. If Gaara had thought Gai obnoxious before, the level had just been bumped up a few notches.

"Kakashi my eternal rival, why must you constantly ruin my manly moments with my most wonderful of students with your hip and cool attitude?!"

Oh sweet mother of god. Gaara's sand latched on to Lee's leg and began to pull. While it was not nearly as strong as it could have been, it made the point clear that he did NOT want to be here and Lee scooped him up, looking reluctant to leave without a good bye to his dearest sensei, but even more reluctant to interrupt.

"Gai sensei will understand," Lee said aloud, seemingly more to assure himself then the contented Kazekage he carried in his arms. They exited the tower and Lee froze as if struck.

Target, Naruto Uzumaki.

"Naruto!" Lee called. He'd dropped the suffix and a scowl was pulling on his lips so when the blonde looked up, he looked rather… nervous. The Green Beast settled Gaara on his shoulder and stormed to the student of the toad Sannin, poking an angry finger into his chest. "You have done a horrible thing!"

"Eh?" Naruto blinked navy hues, arching blond brows together. "What are you talking about fuzzy brows?"

"The statue you slipped into the gift for Gaara-kun stole his soul away!"

Naruto blinked. Then blinked again. Then a gravity overcame his features, his eyes serious, arms crossed. "Lee…I had no idea, I promise you." He shook his head slowly, seemed to think. "I'll go talk to Ba-chan."

A tense moment passed between them. Then, as if to prove his word, Naruto struck the good guy pose and rushed into the tower. Lee stood silent for a moment, a little smile tugging on his lips, before he began to walk down the street again. The Kazekage pawed at one of his arms until the Green Beast settled it before him, allowing the Kazekage to perch on his forearm and palm. He felt more comfortable this way, less jarring motion.

"Gaara-kun is in good hands now," he said aloud, directing it at Gaara but also partly to himself. "Naruto-kun and I will make sure that he is all right."

Gaara nodded on his shoulder. He sensed the guilt and tension radiating from Lee and would have scolded him with his best 'Lee, stop it' if he'd had the voice. Instead he bumped his muzzle against the Green Beast's bowl cut and scowled as best he could in animal form. It seemed to work as Lee brightened a bit more.

"Yosh! Youth shall not abandon us, we shall most assuredly help Gaara-kun!"

They stopped before a little house and Lee pulled a key from the pack on his back. Gaara tilted his head to one side with his curiosity- he'd never been inside Lee's home. But when this was all over…

The door popped open and Lee announced, "I'm home!" to no one but the house itself.

Inwardly Gaara gave a tiny smile. When this was all over, he'd make sure to visit quite often.

**Owari

* * *

**

I happen to like Gai's voice… -Shrug- Let's get this straight. I love Gai and I love Lee. Not together of course, that…creeps me out rather a lot. Anyway. Anything I might say about Gai being 'obnoxious' is strictly because other people are thinking it. His booming voice? I think some children would be scared- loud noises and all. Others would squeal and run to him because of his manliness.

Guess which group I would be in. Ehhem.

Speaking of Gai, if you didn't like the 'subliminal' messaging of the first part of the scene where he comes in I recommend you swallow it. It won't be a major piece, hell, not even a minor, that's all there will be. So breathe, take a chill pill, and laugh at Gaara being a raccoon. But not too loudly. Or he'll kill me.

Anyone catch the irony near the end?

Reviewing is good for the authoress, it keeps her warm and cozy and breaking her ass on chapters.

…Fear my spelling of 'jinchuuriki'. I can't do it. I forget. So…don't sue me, you won't get anything. I HAVE NOTHING! Except my Lee shirt. -Clings to it and scowls- You wouldn't want it, you'd have to make me half naked then ;x


	4. Don't Look Now

**Authors Note-** . If you haven't noticed, updates are going to start coming out more slowly. Or all at once. It depends on what life hurls at me-returning to career path and all that. Sorry! And worship my cool reviewers like Galance and Katori Tsubasa and Otaku no Baka and… ALL OF MY REVIEWERS! There…I'm too lazy to find them all now, so sue me…actually, don't. You won't get anything :3

I repeated something here from chapter one . Pick up on it and maybe I'll let you help decide Gaara's fate

**WARNING:** …I don't like this chapter much. Feels funny. And it's not very Gaara oriented, more Lee… but I love Lee more… -Mauled to death by fangirls- DEAL WITH IT! I LIKE LEE MORE! …But that's not the point…I'm rambling…Hmm… Err, right, anyway, warning… I basically said it. I don't like this chapter. Elements-good. Writing- Bad. Poo. Oh well let's let you decide!

**Disclaimer-** I own Naruto about as much as I own the invention of string cheese. I own the story and Crimson. MINE :B

* * *

**Chapter Four**

**_Don't Look Now_**

Bright and early the next morning (or rather, just really early, not so much bright) there was a thud on Lee's door. Gaara, still fighting off sleep at Lee's kitchen table, cast a heated glare in the direction of the noise, letting out a soft huff of indignation before settling his teal eyes shut again, hiding his muzzle in the bush of his tail.

Amused by his comrade, Lee took a moment to chuckle before he pushed off the counter he'd been leaning against and set down the still steaming cup that had once contained green tea. He exited the little kitchen and went to the front door, popping it open to find a kunai embed there. It was time to meet his team at the gate.

"Sabaku!" He called. Gaara growled in disdain as the Green Beast entered, not so much at the man himself but at the fact that he had been pulled from near slumber. Again. One eye opened to stare at the spandex clad male.

This was as close to a 'what' as Lee could get from the man turned animal, but he caught it very well. His affinity with animals was paying off again.

"It is time to leave for Suna."

The news, accompanied by a jolt of hunger, effectively brought the Kazekage around. Forepaws settled up on the table's edge and the raccoon stretched, letting off a silent yawn before examining the slab of fish Lee had settled before him. He stared at it skeptically, every human sense he had rejecting the raw portion. Not that he didn't like sushi, it was just…so… underprepared. Every raccoon sense he had was wailing at him 'TAKE IT'. In the end, raccoon won aided by hunger. Really he could have stared at Lee until he understood, but…too late. Besides, he was packing.

Gaara got the funny feeling that when he got his body back he would have a strange urge to brush his teeth. Repeatedly. For hours. As soon as he got back from catch up duties.

Minutes later and Lee had his bag freshly packed and was out the door, Gaara perched on his forearm once more. Even for a shinobi village it was early, dawn's white glow looming on the horizon, so very few shops were open. A few vendors smiled and acknowledged Lee, asking if he was home for his usual training schedule.

Which in turn caused Gaara to wonder how much sleep Lee really got. While the Kazekage had been raised an insomniac, he had a demon to back his chakra reserves. Lee did not.

Curious.

They arrived at the gate just as the other members did; surprisingly, Naruto was right on time. Aside from the Kyuubi vessel there were Neji, Shikamaru, Chouji and…

Inwardly Gaara wilted. Shit.

"Gai sensei!"

"Lee!"

To keep them from hugging, Neji slid between the exuberant green beasts. "We have a mission to do you know."

Lee frowned a little. "It seems my eternal rival is right…" He said reluctantly.

Gai perked right up again. "Never fear Lee! Our hip and cool eternal rivals won't impede the youth of the mission!"

"Is Kakashi sensei joining us, sir?" Lee inquired. He'd heard that the Sharingan Knight was notorious for being late…

Fears of delay were put to rest as Gai jammed a thumb towards his back, turning to show Lee none other then Kakashi tied like a pack and carrying both he and Gai's bags, reading. "I knew he'd be late, so I retrieved him. Isn't that right Kakashi."

"Mm." Kakashi grunted, effectively causing Gai to pout.

Trademark shouts employed, the group bolted from the village. Gaara groaned and hid his muzzle.

This was going to be a LONG trip.

And it was. With the extra people their movements were more precise and stealthy, not to mention lacking the Green Beast's terrifying speed. Well, terrifying if you were on the receiving end. But during this trip the Kazekage was able to learn a few things.

Shikamaru thinks EVERYTHING is troublesome, especially Temari, Ino, and everything else female.

Neji Hyuuga, prodigy or no, needs to learn to stay the hell away from Lee

Naruto, to this day, cannot shut up

Gai and Lee CAN be quiet. As a matter of fact, they were the quietest of all of them among Shikamaru's whining, Neji's very loud sarcasm that never ceased, Chouji's agreeing with the Nara, and Naruto's…well…Normal self

They were focused he supposed.

But, eventually, they did arrive in Suna. The loudness of Gai and Lee returned as if someone had flipped a switch and Gaara found himself inwardly adopting the Nara's sentiment of 'how troublesome'. Papers were checked and hails were exchanged and the group entered the sand village.

After a quick stop into the front office of the hospital to retrieve the key to Gaara's hospital room, the group headed up. Lee, not quite ready to see the results of his journey again, went to find Crimson to gather any details they may have acquired in his absence.

"I think she's in room 81," commented a nurse when asked. Lee showed his thanks and went to the next floor, knocking on the door.

No reply came. Warily he opened the door. "Excuse me…"

Lee went silent, rounded eyes bulging to saucer proportions. A man looked up from the floor where he lay atop someone, but on close inspection it wasn't someone but a…

"Mannequin." Lee blinked. "That is… a mannequin."

The man stared at him, pushed blue locks from his face, expression blank. He stood ever so slowly, lifting up his plastic figure.

"Let us never speak of this." The man said seriously before, in a gush of smoke, disappearing.

As hard as he thought, Lee could never recall being more scarred (times he'd walked in on his sensei and the Sharingan knight excluded). He backed out, counted to five, and his smile rebound into place.

Raccoon Gaara peered around the corner of a hall, having just retreated from seeing his shell of a body, and spotted the younger Green Beast. He bound down the hall and stood at the curiously strained Lee's side.

For a minute or so Lee had stood outside of room 13, office of Crimson. He'd knocked, but was wary of the silence within. That is, until a crash went off.

"Crimson-san?" He said with alarm, pushing open the door. A high pitched squeak met him before his eyes could fully focus.

Crimson, lab coat clad, had the middle sand sibling pinned to the table and HE'D been the one to yelp. She stared at Lee frankly before climbing from her perch, giving a grin that was far too calm for the position she'd been caught in with the Kazekage's brother, and walking the span of the room.

"Ah, finally. I expected you yesterday. Come, we have much to discuss."

Lee was horrified. Actually, he was beyond horrified, seeing as he'd been horrified before. Why oh WHY did this happen to him? And what would Gaara say had he known?

The mini-kage, however, wasn't surprised or mortified. In fact, he'd suspected all along and, memory serve right, it was her lunch break so she wasn't technically wasting Suna's time… Besides, when did Gaara ever start caring about what others did when it didn't affect the village?

When Kankuro was collected and Lee out of shock, they went to the room of the Kazekage that had sprouted a lock. Upon entering they found the group seated neatly in various areas around Gaara's physical form.

The raccoon perched atop Lee's bowl cut looked a little annoyed at having people so near his body when he was not present. Small paws flexed on Lee's skull until the Green Beast winced slightly to which Gaara quickly hopped off to sit on his bedside. As much as he was loathe to admit, hurting someone, especially someone who cared for his well being and who he considered a dear friend, wouldn't help the situation. Besides, when that someone was Lee the odds of him being more angry with everyone around him were astronomical.

Crimson didn't need a clipboard to pull off the serious doctor look but she had one and that made it all the worse. Thin wire framed glasses settled on the bridge of her nose and she seemed to be contemplating how to break the news.

Only, she was really bad at softening the blow. She was blunt and Gaara respected that-sometimes he fancied that she enjoyed the stunned looks she received, but only sometimes.

"So Gaara's body is starting to return vital signs. Heart rate is going up day by day, but there's no signs of it actually being him. Any ideas from anyone?" Her gaze flickered around, testing to see if anyone had caught on. Gaara, naturally, had, Kankuro seemed to be in denial, and Kakashi was shifting looks between the raccoon and the dormant body.

Shikamaru spoke for the annoyed Crimson, whose face screamed she was losing hope in humanity. "So Shukaku's waking up," he drawled. A minute shiver ran down his spine. "Man…what a drag."

Silence wove around the room, tension. Realizing she had more information, Crimson reapplied the serious expression, buried the urge to slap a giant gold star on the intelligent one's body and take him home, and went on. "That's correct. Now, some other news." She stared at the Kazekage who stared right back. "Forgive me, Gaara-sama."

Stillness quieted people's movements, attention turning to the jade eyed raccoon. Neji was unable to hide his shock this time and gaped outright, indirectly mirroring Chouji. Kakashi was grinning in triumph at Gai, murmuring '70 to 70' under his breath while Lee retained an expression of blankness, disbelief evident in his eyes.

"'Gaara-sama'?" The younger of the Green Beasts slowly looked at the raccoon. "That is where Gaara has gone?"

"Don't sound so skeptical, Lee," Kankuro said gravely. It was unusual for him to use the Green Beast's name and this caught everyone's attention. "When the statue burst, the marionette I carved for Gaara was…well, fuzzy and breathing."

Lee wasn't stupid. A little slow on the uptake a lot of the time, but not stupid. Still, even when he tried to accept this his mind balked at him.

Everyone jumped when Naruto spoke somewhere near the Kazekage's bed. He'd been so quiet his loud, orange presence had been forgotten momentarily. "We need to do something about Shukaku." He stared, navy eyes rueful, down to his fellow container and murmured, "Gaara…"

A touch of remorse wriggled its way into Lee's heart. His dear friend, his precious person, was ill and here he stood wasting time. If Sabaku were truly Gaara, after this was settled the Kazekage could tell him personally.

"Please forgive me Crimson-san, I cannot believe this just now. But it is of no concern." He shood his head, black locks shielding pieces of his determined visage.

"Of no concern?" Kankuro snarled, taking a step forward, "If he's my little brother then god damnit he needs to be protected and-"

Before he could completely lose his temper, Naruto's soft voice cut him off, "That's not what Fuzzy Brows meant." All eyes went to the blonde who stood smiling wryly. Heated blue eyes clashed on rounded, equally heated black, understanding there. Going to the ends of the earth to help Sasuke. Doing whatever he could for Gaara.

A grin lit Lee's features, grateful and every bit the flaming spirit. He regarded Kankuro with a warm, yet earnest expression. "I will still protect Sabaku with everything I am, as I would any other living creature. The fact that there is a slight possibility that it is Gaara will only drive me to protect him all the more. I merely meant that I shall run to the ends of every country endlessly with every ounce of life in my body to help restore my special person."

Tension settled again like wet silk. Kankuro was probably kicking himself. Crimson cleared her throat delicately, diverting some of the attention away from Lee who seemed fit to burst. "We don't know what to do yet, but we should keep watch on him at all times in case there is a change."

This seemed to be as much as a dismissal as they were going to receive as, afterwards, she went to the window and began to run a finger down her clipboard, ruby brows furrowed. Shikamaru, ever paranoid, opened his mouth to ask where 'that troublesome sister of Kankuro's' was when the door popped open and the blonde entered.

"Lee," she said, extending a small note. Her gaze met the Nara's for a split second before both flinched and looked away. Bad relationships can do that to you.

The Green Beast took the scroll and examined it carefully. It was sealed with the Hokage's stamp, which could only mean she'd found something. He split the wax, unrolling the minute parchment and shifting it a bit so that Gaara, who had perched on his shoulder, could see it. The handwriting was sloppy as if she'd written it quickly or drunk. Or both.

_Lee,_

_Get back to Konoha. News on Gaara. Leave the team just in case._

_Tsunade_

Lee wound the message back up quickly, tucking it away in his bag and glancing back to the group who stood looking at him for any news. "My presence is requested back in Konoha, Tsunade has news. Please stay and watch Gaara."

As he turned away, Kankuro's voice caught his attention. "Oi, leg warmers." Gai glanced back first, but noticed the attention on his student and stayed silent.

The younger male turned. "Yes?"

Kankuro had always been really bad at being sincere or earnest. He swallowed his pride as best he could and mumbled, "Sorry. It's just, my brother…" He trailed off awkwardly.

At this Lee smiled, inclining his head. "It is all right."

"Fuzzy brows!" Naruto called, voice demanding. "We'll do our part, get Baa-chan to work!"

"Yes!"

"Lee," Gai said, voice thick with emotion, "may youth guide you! Now go!"

He turned with a 'yes sir!' to do so when another voice, close by, caught him. "Lee," black eyes swiveled to Naji, who was almost touching him with his sudden, eerie nearness, "hurry."

Gaara's eyes narrowed dangerously at the Hyuuga and he slid down into Lee's arms, curling possessively against the Green Beast. His sand hissed irritably in its small gourd and he bared his small fangs, letting out a low growl. Lee gave a slightly nervous grin and obliged his rival. Gladly.

**-Owari-

* * *

**

**A. Crimson:** …I don't like it.

**Crimson K.:** Quit whining, you got it out!

**A. Crimson:** …But it's so… BAD.

**Crimson K.:** Shattup! Now go work on chapter five before you get distracted again. DO IT! –Snaps whip-

**A. Crimson:** YIPE! Damn you Crimson, DAMN YOU! –Sprints off, scowling-

**Gaara Raccoon:** …Did it work?

**Crimson K:** -Grin- Like a charm cutie.

**Gaara Raccoon:** …What did you call me?

**Crimson K:** …Err… OH HARK, I HEAR SOMEONE CALLING IN PAIN! –Sprints off-

**_Review. Do it now._**


	5. Nightly Talks

**Authors Note-** RAWR! Fear my postings, fear them, for they are all typed late at night and probably don't make much sense! …I wish they did. I'm sorry they're so horrid X.x …What the hell is with this chapter's TITLE?! I don't think I like this chapter either… Keeping them in character while building fluff tension kills me. I apologize in advance. Please note that, while part of this does seem to be pointless, it helps build the fluff tension and some of Gaara's trust towards Lee. They've known each other for a long time, but a little more kick when he's stuck as a raccoon couldn't hurt!

And thank _KatoriTsubasa _and _otakunobaka_. The reviews were excellent and spurred me to write more. I do hope this lives up to their expectations, at least a little bit…

**Warning-** … DUN DUN DUN!!! Fluff! …Sorta! Oh and…I do hope someone out there wants little Gaara to have a happy ending or…something might just happen. –Mysterious grin-

**Disclaimer-** …I own a few stray OC's, a really old cell phone, some pocket lint, this story and… Oh, nothing else. Naruto characters are not mine, unfortunately, I'm not that creative -.-;;

* * *

_**Gone Wrong Chapter Five**_

_Nightly Talks_

Running. As much as Gaara loved spending time away from the city, especially with his comrade Lee, he was beginning to hate it.

Jade eyes trained on the navy sky that was spotted with tiny stars. The moon hung heavy on the horizon, nearing full ripeness in its monthly quarter. It bathed the desert landscape in an opaque light that caused Lee's moving shadow to do an odd, flickering dance on the sand that occasionally drew the raccoon's attention with the wariness that movement in a normally still landscape brings. Despite the fact that it symbolized and strengthened Shukaku, Gaara had always had an affinity for the moon and the light it cast. Or maybe it was due to Shukaku, but he preferred thinking of it as himself and not the beast within.

It was a few hours before dawn when Lee finally slowed, then stopped. Gaara fancied that if he squinted he could see the trees wedding into the desert. Carefully Gaara hopped down from Lee's grasp, lifting small paws to stretch above his head, bushy tail frizzing behind him.

Lee, breathing regulated once more, dropped to the sand at Gaara's side. This time around Gaara had conveniently raided Lee's closet and pulled out a sleeping bag for the leaf nin to bring. The blanket was fine but Lee needed more then a flimsy piece of material. At least, that's what the protective, possessive nature of Gaara said and what Gaara said had a tendency to occur whether others really wanted it or not.

The Kazekage watched the Green Beast gingerly unravel the cords to the sleeping bag, perfect black hair in disarray around his handsome, if not a bit odd to most, face. Delicate lips, normally gleaming with a smile, were down turned softly, the fatigue of so much effort on such little sleep chipping away the happy exterior for the more serious, thoughtful, and angry boy beneath. He stifled a yawn and snapped open the heavy material before his attention settled on Gaara.

Jade eyes met onyx. Lee's smile was tired and a bit weak, but true and free of the usual enamor. It made Gaara feel…almost timid, if he could ever call his emotional highs and lows that. To be able to see such a raw, real emotion on a usually masked face was unnerving, like he was being opened up to. He inclined his muzzle a bit, gaze fixated on Lee who was brushing off sand as he slid into the sleeping bag.

Rock Lee was such a fascinating person. Gaara's gaze narrowed a bit with thought and his mind unconsciously attempted to pull his expression into a frown. Of course, it couldn't, but he would have been frowning were he able. The thing was about Lee that he didn't…bother him. Really he should have, seeing as he was loud and, in many ways, Gaara's opposite, yet he didn't. Maybe it was due to the fact that they were both outcasts from society, or the fact that Lee was the first one to cause him injury, pain. Perhaps it was because Lee had been the first to survive.

Or maybe it was because, for some damn reason, they protected each other, worried for each other. Naruto had cared and, truth be told, had been the first one he trusted truly next to his older brother. He owed Naruto his life, was indebted to him for the saving of what little sanity he had retained. But Lee was different. The loud, obnoxious blonde he could relate to from the demon trapped within, but the loud, obnoxious, yet endearing 'fuzzy brows' was the one who managed to brighten the Kazekage's day, no matter the impossible odds.

Gaara snorted, shook his head, and pad across the sand. The front paws he dusted together before settling on the opened sleeping bag, twisting around to sit on his fluffy tail and dust off his hindquarters before he settled down to lay, curled against the abdomen of Lee. The material of the sleeping bag was flung over them, settling on the Green Beast's chest and just at the base of Gaara's neck. One night on the way to Suna Lee had learned the hard way that the raccoon needed to see to be comfortable; probably still had the bite mark on his arm.

"Sabaku." Lee spoke as he rolled over to face the stars, arms lacing behind his head, drinking in the sights above. Gaara rose a bit from his lying position to show he was listening, ears perked. For a moment Lee sat only in silence, as if collecting his thoughts, before he went on. "I may be in love."

A lurch resounded somewhere near Gaara's stomach, almost like pain. His gaze narrowed, the sand that had dispersed in his cleaning process rising a bit from the ground like static. He repressed this pain, tried to listen for Lee's voice again.

The Green Beast shifted, as if uncomfortable. This was odd as he usually never did so, which made Gaara want to lash out at something even more. "This would be rather awkward if you were really Gaara," there was an uncertainness in his voice, like he was teetering on the edge of confession but not quite ready to take that last step, admitting it to someone he loved. This stilled the sand for a touch of curiosity. After a suspended moment Lee spoke again, finality to his tone, "But I do believe that I am in love with the Kazekage."

At first, it didn't hit him. It was just words, just a nervous Lee speaking to him. Then, the words themselves dragged memories long repressed up along with them. Gaara's breath caught. He stared. Uncertainty, fear, anxiousness, rage, all boiled up within the Kazekage at once with alarming speed and he squeezed his eyes shut, tilting his muzzle away from the Green Beast, pushing down upon the unstable emotions that arose against his wall of protection.

But that voice, that same soft voice that had begun the process of breaking him open, jerked him back to earth. "I would protect him with my life." It wasn't so much the words that helped, but the sound of his voice. Jade eyes opened, almost painfully, to rest on Lee. "He is my dearest comrade, my special person." Gaara blinked as Lee turned a look he couldn't quite decipher onto his little raccoon form, like a mix of resolution and conflicting emotion. "It is a good thing that you are not Gaara, Sabaku-kun, or else I may have just embarrassed myself. Goodnight."

And before Gaara could lift a paw in protest, Lee rolled over and was out like a light. The raccoon sat silent, inwardly damning the Green Beast. He knew for certain that he wouldn't be able to sleep at all tonight, an unfortunate thing, as when he returned to his body such a luxury would be removed.

'Damnit Lee,' he thought bitterly, stubborn resolve causing him to close his eyes anyway, 'if only you knew.'

Light brought Gaara around, along with a subtle bounce of motion. Nearly at once his gaze was open, staring around as he moved nimbly through the trees.

They were on the move again, were almost to Konoha. Gaara's body, eager to sap up what little sleep he could get, rebelled against his desire to stay awake and kept lulling him into the confines of sleep, curled in the arms of Lee as he dashed silently along through the forest. One minute he was staring at the passing trees, the leafy green canopy shielding him from the harsh sun above and the next…

With a growl Gaara opened his eyes again, only to find himself staring at the Hokage tower. Inwardly he frowned, would have pouted were it in his nature to do so. He'd fallen asleep again. Lee didn't seem to mind though, nodding to his friends as he passed. To Gaara, leaned against his chest, his heart sounded unnaturally loud and upon close inspection he looked nearly sick with fatigue.

They arrived in Tsunade's office minutes later where the blonde sat, nursing a bottle of sake and staring pensively down at a book. She took a drink, ran a hand back through her hair, and stared blankly at the wall for a full minute before she recalled that Shizune had indeed said that Rock Lee had returned.

Seeing him sobered her within a few heart beats. Caramel glazed eyes narrowed darkly and she pushed herself to stand, wavering only a fraction. Gaara was inwardly impressed; it usually took Kankuro a full two minutes in to a serious situation to sober.

"You are in no condition to hear any news," she said almost instantly, voice flat and eyes hard with resolution. Lee's own gaze, to Gaara's surprise, narrowed with his own determination.

"Tsunade-sama, we need to aid Gaara-kun as quickly as we are able." The voice that spoke was strained for politeness, something the Kazekage had only heard of the Green Beast once before. "My physical condition is of no concern right now."

There it was again. 'Of no concern'. The sand collected in the gourd upon Gaara's back trembled slightly with possessiveness. It was of concern! Unfortunately he could not voice such a thought, so he instead cast an incredibly annoyed look at the boy who cradled him in one muscular arm.

Measured tones were not Tsunade's forte, Gaara had learned this during the meetings they had attended together. Now the impatient blonde Hokage reached for all of her patience and pushed out the most motherly tone she could while still being firm. "If you fall over dead Lee, not only will I lose one of the best shinobi of the hidden leaf, but I imagine the Kazekage will not be too pleased with me." She leaned forward, eyes narrowing a bit. "Now, as Hokage and head medic, I order you to go and get at least three hours of rest before you return."

Three hours? Gaara's gaze rose to Lee's, whose expression had hardened with repressed anger. What was worse, he had a feeling that it was not at the Hokage, but at the Green Beast himself. The amount of time hardly seemed appropriate for such exertion, but as Lee left the tower without so much as a hello to anyone Gaara got the suspicion they would be lucky to even receive even that from the impatient, worried taijutsu specialist.

Outside, Lee paused on the side of the street, taking a deep and shuddering breath that eased some of the tension from his bunched muscles. The first few steps he took away from the tower seemed forced, his jaw remaining set in a rather frightening visage. But as the steps went on they relaxed a bit and his face eased for a more pleasant one. Absent was the usual gleaming grin, but it was much better then the previous expression.

The front door to Lee's home was unlocked, the inside delicately de-trapped before the Green Beast set down the Kazekage and gave a long stretch. Various pieces of his body set off loud cracks and groans of protest before the owner relaxed, casting a wane smile to Gaara.

"I suppose that I may as well use this time to clean off." He tilted his head to one side, "Want to come?"

Gaara had to forcibly remind himself that Lee still believed him to be only a raccoon. When there was no response or motion the Green Beast shrugged and disappeared down the hall to his bedroom, where a voice drifted out.

"I shall leave the door open just in case."

For several minutes Gaara sat, staring blankly at the wall, tail twitching absently behind him. His sense of what he had grown up believing battled with the few social skills his brother, with the help of his sister, had instilled into him. Would it really be so bad? After all, he was a raccoon. But seeing someone naked, unaware of who you really were, was wrong.

The scent of bath oils permeated his senses, the sound of running water stopping a few seconds later. A silent sigh passed the raccoon's muzzle and he hopped down from the couch a minute later, padding down the hall and into Lee's bedroom, nuzzling open the bathroom door upon entering and peering inside. To his relief Lee was all ready half-lowered into the foaming waters, wincing softly as scrapes, bruises, and probably a large assortment of other aches were touched by the warm waters.

"Sabaku," Lee said with a little grin when he noticed the presence of the raccoon. Gaara hopped on the edge of the tub and looked skeptically at the water. What in the hell was in this? It smelled like a medicine cabinet with a handful of flowers! Noticing the expression, Lee gave a chuckle, "You probably would not want to take a bath in this, the smell would stick on your fur. I can fix you up in a minute."

Well that was a relief. Gaara walked carefully along the rim of the bathtub until he was seated at the end of the tub where there was a large lip, watching Lee clean himself as keenly as he would a shinobi practicing attack. The dark haired man was ginger, washing off each scar with care, rubbing at tensed muscles. He was a well oiled machine, his body the only weapon he had, Gaara supposed he would know how to care for it.

"This reminds me of a mission I had once," Lee spoke suddenly, nearly causing Gaara to topple into the bathtub with shock. "Well, not this," he added with a meager laugh, "but the running between places, though the distance was not nearly as far."

And Lee began to talk.

It had been a long time since Gaara had been able to sit down and converse with the Green Beast, though it was usually Lee doing most of the talking during these conversations, they were conversations nonetheless. Now was no exception as his voice was no longer useable, but he gave responses where he could, with a nod here and there, a paw placed over his muzzle in exasperation, variations of his gaze. It was comfortable and seemed to vent some of the Green Beast's aggravation at being sent away.

After about an hour the Green Beast was finished. Gaara hopped down from the tub and pad from the bathroom, sitting down just out in the bedroom. Repressed social skills or not, he had the decency to leave.

The shower turned on. Gaara waited silently outside the door, his thoughts a silent hum of contentment. A paw raised, brushed over his muzzle absently.

Minutes later and Lee peered out from the bathroom, holding open the door clad in his jumpsuit, the upper half rolled down to his waist. Gaara slunk in to find the bathtub refilled, no awkward smells drifting from it, just clear water. His inner desert being was relieved to find that Lee had not filled he tub entirely for his small form, but that was replaced with sudden alarm as a single arm lifted him up heavily.

"Ready?" Lee said happily. Quickly Gaara regained himself, dropping the gourd from his back before he nodded.

Water came up warm around him, Lee gingerly slipping his arm free. Gaara took a moment to adjust to the awkward feeling of water clinging to his fur and pressuring against his flesh through the thick, wet mat. He slid down to fully submerge, sand and dirt coming off in a cloud. Vaguely he heard Lee laugh before his head popped up again, looking up to the green beast who knelt at the side of the tub.

Hands were slid out over the side, covered in a clear and bubbly substance. Gaara sniffed at it delicately before he closed his eyes in acceptance. Shampoo, nothing bad. Delicate, strong fingers worked into the fur and skin beneath, encompassing particles that the water had not at first removed. Jade eyes slid open, staring up at Lee who worked diligently, carefully, brows knit with concentration to prevent injuring the fragile creature he cleaned. Maybe it wasn't so much the fact that he was becoming cleaned, but more the gentle ministrations being applied; either way, it made him purr ever so softly.

A pause occurred then. Lee grinned down at Gaara, whose eyes were half lidded. Not like he could help it, wasn't it a natural reaction to relax? After a silent moment Lee turned on the water faucet and sat back, hand poised to switch it off again.

It took a moment, but Gaara dove beneath the running water when he was collected, watching the suds run off of him. With one deft paw he pulled the drain plug, the water above him halting as Lee twisted the handle. He blinked through soggy fur before a large, fluffy white towel dropped over his eyes and he was hauled out of the tub to stand, blinking, on the bath mat.

Then Lee left him. Small paws worked hurriedly to dry off with the towel, setting it at the rim of the tub before stepping from the bathroom to the bedroom. Lee lay on his back on the bed, eyes closed, looking at peace. Soft breaths escaped his lips, calm, nearly giving the appearance of sleep, but his body was tensed in such a way that Gaara knew he was not.

Something told him that Lee did not want to talk about this one. Silently he walked across the room, hopping up on the bed and curling up at the Green Beast's side. When Lee's gaze landed on him, he did not return the look, keeping his eyes closed. It was quiet, but that suited both just fine.

An hour later found both in the Hokage's office, looking considerably better then when they'd first arrived. The Hokage studied them carefully before letting out a sigh, raising a hand to her forehead and rubbing as if she had a headache that she just couldn't get rid of.

"The statue you brought to us was a spirit sealing statue, one of many that was used to destroy great leaders. They were shaped as the demons who wreaked havoc on the land as symbols, like destroying a piece of evil in the world." Her gaze rose to settle on Lee, who she had convinced (with the help of Gaara's sand) to sit down. "Most of these were destroyed a long time ago." Under her breath, slightly bitterly, she mumbled, "They sure as hell weren't meant for demon containers."

"What do we do?" Lee asked, voice tense. Gaara felt his pain. Really, it was his problem after all.

Tsunade laced her fingers before her and settled her chin atop them, gaze settling on Lee with the weight of one thousand tomorrows. "If the statue is shattered with the host body, the Kazekage's body where Shukaku resides, and vessel of the original soul, wherever Gaara's personality and life happen to be at the moment, within a certain vicinity and the body is still in tact, we reason that he should be restored to normal."

"We reason?" Lee was probably unaware that he was voicing Gaara's thoughts as well, "What is the other possible outcome?"

"Gaara may lose himself forever. He may die or be trapped in whatever form he is in currently forever." Tsunade sighed, seeming very tired suddenly. "That is all that we can do."

Gaara stared at the wood, processing the information. If they were correct then he would face Shukaku once more, be back in his body. The other chances were that he would be stuck as a raccoon forever or perhaps die. If it were one of the latter options, he sincerely hoped that he would die. While being a raccoon wasn't the worst that could have happened, being one forever, knowing that he had been human at one point, monster or no, would be torment. He didn't think he could take it.

To destroy the statue when Shukaku was near with his body was another matter entirely. The idea of the havoc he could wreak with only the slightest energy made Gaara feel ill. Not knowing what his body could have been doing, even at that moment, as worse. He turned his gaze to the statue that sat in the center of Tsunade's desk and set a hateful glare upon it.

"What do we do in preparation?" Lee asked. His voice was all business, but anyone who had known him long enough could hear the undercurrents of strain.

"We need to find where Gaara's mental being, or his soul, is at the moment. It will probably be something that was near him on the day of the incident. A random occurrence, such as a possession." Tsunade bent over the side of the desk to retrieve a fallen book and did not see the effect her words had upon Lee. "There's even a chance that it could resemble Shukaku's nature."

Wide eyes stared at Gaara, but the shock was only there for a split second before they were calm, resolute. Regret nothing. Lee stood and took a step towards the desk, crouching over to look at Gaara, who looked back to him with an expression that could have been read as 'I told you so'. And really, that was what the expression was meant to have said in a way.

"I know where Gaara-kun is Tsunade-sama," Lee's voice spoke softly, rousing her from the explaining tirade the Hokage had gone on. She sat up, expression serious. Lee took a step back and before she could yell at him, gave a deep bow. "I am sorry for the wait, Kazekage-sama."

Her gaze swiveled to rest on the raccoon seated on her desk. She didn't looked surprised, moreover she looked interested, keen on the medical wonders perhaps. Or maybe the idea that she had solved part of the case meant Shizune would let her get shit faced. Either way, there was interest there.

"This is-"

BOOM!

An explosion rocked the Hokage Tower. Every window burst inwards, flinging glass everywhere, the shock sending Tsunade, Lee, and Gaara across the room. A slick hissing noise began to rise about the tower and Gaara gave a low, feral growl…

**-Owari-**

* * *

I'm so bad at cliff hangers x3 I'm also VERY predictable. I admit it. Like I said, I didn't like this chapter much. Many people may be asking 'why didn't Tsunade just send someone trusted to Konoha to tell Lee if she was worried about the note being intercepted?' Answer- the people who could have made it there faster were ALL READY in Suna. 

Another one- Why did Tsunade make Lee take a break if there was a risk of Shukaku? Answer: Tsunade is not stupid- far from it. Hard headed, but not stupid. Think about it. Telling someone besides Lee wouldn't do much good because he would just run out of Konoha to go back to Suna anyway and having him pass out on her wouldn't be good either. If she'd have told him right away he would have wanted to work on it IMMEDIATELY and would have overworked himself, possibly died, etc, etc. I'm not killing my Lee k'thnxbai.

Anyway, I hope this isn't TOO awful… Forgive me if it is… Reviews will make authoress happy! It's nearing the end, you want a happy authoress so she doesn't leave you hanging for a bajillion years from uninspiration, RIGHT?


	6. Knock Knock

**AN**- The last chapter depressed the crap out of me. I got, what, three reviews? It amazes me that 'Victory' has a bunch of reviews and yet this, the one that I put all of my effort, however bad, into, only has about twenty reviews. Twenty. That's why this took so long. I almost decided to not post it.

Authoress has been going through emotional trauma and the lack of response does NOT help. Review damnit.

**Warning-** POV's jump all over the place, hopefully you won't get confused. Oh and REVIEW. I'm normally not much of a stickler, but this depresses me.

**Disclaimer-** If you look closely you will see that there is not enough Kankuro, Shikamaru, Lee, Itachi, and numerous others time for this series to belong to me.

* * *

**Gone Wrong Chapter Six**

_Knock Knock_

A hand composed entirely of sand that was thrice that of a normal humans gripped hold of the window, dragging forward Gaara's body on a pillar of sand. Or perhaps now it could be referred to as Shukaku. Either way, it had captured the Kazekage's full attention and had him at his full aggression.

"Knock knock," the body chuckled in a grainy voice, those eyes that had once held an aqua tinge now a sickly yellow. They settled on Gaara's, whose small gourd had exploded to settle like static around him, fur bristling. "Ah, so there you are."

Mocking him, just like every other god forsaken day of his life. That voice that permeated his every waking thought, falling from his own lips, was an eerie sensation. Gaara was furious. Sand that slithered near him faltered at his presence, wavered, became still. This brought the raccoon Kage little comfort as even this was taking a hit on his chakra. The blasted demon wasn't even trying.

Shukaku looked amused, a cruel little smile playing on _Gaara's_ body's lips. "Fighting me will get you no where, boy." A laugh rumbled in the throat of the body he occupied and he threw his head back, red locks spilling about his face. "It never has!"

It was harsh, uncalled for…The Kazekage's muzzle dipped a fraction, sand grains drenched with chakra swirling above the raccoon form he occupied. Damnit, it was true. But that wouldn't stop him. His gaze, usually a chilly jade, relaxed, bled a soft aqua. The sand around him fell limp to the floor of the Hokage's office and he stared at Shukaku.

A brief calm before the storm.

He pad across the room, sand trailing at his small feet like a bridal train, to settle at the side of the statue that had been hurled across the room. Shukaku's laughter died away, eyes narrowing on Gaara's innocent façade, the expression hardening nearly instantly. The Kazekage observed that the demon was nervous with much satisfaction while he discreetly lashed at the statue behind his back with bits of sand.

It was no good, the thing wouldn't break that way. Damnit.

As if reading his thoughts the Godaime Hokage stood, gaze steely. Chakra began surging through her limbs as she prepared herself to pound the one tail into the ground, but as she took a step forward Lee threw out an arm.

"Hokage-sama, you cannot damage Gaara-kun's body." To this her gaze narrowed, but Lee went on quickly. "I do not mean that you could not damage him, but rather should not."

"Lee," her tone was soft, yet held a tone that relayed the seriousness of the situation, "Konoha is in danger, I can't just watch because you're afraid I'll kill Gaara." There was a brief pause before she added, "Which, if need be, I will."

The Green Beast visibly flinched at the word 'kill' but knew if it came down to it he would do what was necessary for the good of Konoha. His onyx gaze met the wary one of Shukaku, gleaming from Gaara's visage. But this was not Gaara. Gaara was…

Lee looked at the raccoon settled beside the statue and swallowed the pride and anxiety the realization brought. That was Gaara. Some part of him had acknowledged this all along, ever since he'd seen those carefully guarded teal orbs.

Resolve slid Lee into a fighting stance. "Hokage-sama." He shook his head slightly, bowl cut swaying, "Tsunade." Surprise lit her features at such informality from the Green Beast. "It is not as a son of Konoha that I ask this, but as a proud man fighting for someone he loves, as Naruto for Sasuke, Gai for Kakashi, and even you for Jiraiya and Orochimaru. Give me half an hour's time to push him back, allow me to hold him at bay with my life on the line so that you may discover the truth of the statue. If nothing is found after this allotted time, you may do as necessary."

Shukaku sneered. "You, hold me off boy? I think not. As well as you may have done against my container, I am a different league all together."

For a moment Tsunade could say nothing. Yes, she would fight tooth and nail for her teammates; the ones that she loved even today after their disappearance of two years. As Hokage though she owed her village safety. Yet…

"Fifteen minutes Lee. If even a single life is lost…"

But Lee was shaking his head. "Do not worry Hokage-sama. It _is_ as a son of Konoha, the greatest hidden village, I vow that if any leaf life is lost, it shall be mine."

A snort escaped the one tail. "Fine boy, become my first sacrifice. But first…" Sand whipped out to wrap around the statue, curling around it to drag it near. In a heartbeat Gaara's own sand was there, fluctuating minute control over Shukaku's to halt it for only a moment.

But Lee only needed a moment.

"Konoha SENPU!"

Sand exploded all over the Hokage's office, each grain losing chakra control to fall limp on the floor. The statue fell into Lee's open palm where he cradled it near his body, glaring at Shukaku who, to his credit, only looked mildly surprised. Tsunade took the cursed artifact and stepped away, brow furrowed with the weight of concern her decision settled upon her.

In truth, Shukaku had never seen the boy fight; felt the after effects, sure, but never seen. During those exams it had been all his container's own insanity derived from neglect, unaided by the one tail's prodding. When Lee crouched low, those orange leg warmers gliding off to reveal the massive weights beneath, he had no idea the consequences allowing the removal would incur. The demon stood, looking wary but overall not amazed.

Right up until Lee moved.

There was no blue to strike at, no whistle of sound, Lee was suddenly just gone, visage reappearing in the form of a sharp strike to the possessed Gaara's middle. Air burst from the body with a guttural 'oomph' before another kick swiftly joined the first, the combined effort sending Shukaku bursting from his perch, rocketing outwards to sail over Konoha. His bearings regained when the stars faded from his blurred vision, arm raising upwards in a rush of sand to catch the impudent male.

But Lee had fought this sand before, even if it had been controlled by another, and knew the drill. He was all ready in motion.

Shukaku couldn't breathe, let alone curse before he was struck with a blow he couldn't identify, one that hurled him out to the trees. Limbs slapped at him as he fell, gourd taking bits and pieces of the impact, yet unable to keep up with the speed he fell at. With an ungraceful grunt he landed on the ground and lay still, unable to breathe.

Lee landed softly on a rooftop and watched Shukaku's decent for the briefest of moments. He cast a serious glance at the Hokage tower where a small, gray and black form took a dive from the broken windows and inwardly gave a silent prayer to whatever god may care. Then he was off at a sprint, form blurring to nothing but a green speck to those who looked hard enough, towards the trees where the one tail lay waiting.

Pain. A choked gasp slipped from the one tail host's lips as he sat upright, ruby locks in a mess of disarray about pale features. That devil in green landed silent before him, striking a pose of taijutsu tradition, face blank in wait. The demon had trouble fathoming this male- what was so special that drew his container so? To his displeasure he couldn't restrain the grunt of effort he emitted upon standing, eyes darkening upon his opponent.

"I am happy," Lee murmured, catching Shukaku's full attention, "to be able to face you at last."

Breeze stirred the trees, whispered through the moist green leaves. All was still around them, onyx eyes on yellow that were rapidly narrowing. It was pure tension, awaiting the subtlest move, yet Lee showed none of it.

But Shukaku didn't have to move. Lee remembered this nearly too late, hurling himself backwards as a stream of sand erupted from the earth. He rolled aside just as quickly when sand began to explode behind him, forming a sort of wall.

Yet Lee was not one to be taken down so easily. The walls of sand, slithering around him in great waves, did nothing to disuade him from his mission, merely earned a generous smile from the determined male.

Sand lunged, yet Lee stood still. It drew nearer and nearer, looming as ominous hands ready to crush the male where he stood, yet he didn't even appear to be breathing. This stirred unease within the one tail. His weapon slowed, head cocking to listen for noises. Perhaps this was all a ploy and this male had used a substitution jutsu?

"Konoha Senpu!" Again that attack, causing sand to hurtle away from the green clad male as it hopped to freedom. Speed was on his side, a sharp kick exploding outwards… To meet sand. But not even this could withhold the male's strength and it was brushed away beneath the brute force, his leg catching Shukaku and sending him smashing backwards onto the ground.

Without a move sand was erupting from the earth again, snatching at Lee as if to drag him beneath the earth. The Taijutsu master wove among them easily and struck out with his fist, breaking another barrier of sand and catching the red head square in the jaw. Up came the little body to go flying through the air, but not to smash into a tree. Sand hovered in the air to cushion Shukaku who immediately forced himself to recover, turning to greet Lee's oncoming assault with a tidal wave of sand.

Lee was not much for swearing save during awe, excitement, or stress. "Shit…" he hissed then as his ankle was caught in an iron grip. It seemed Shukaku was tired of being kicked around.

Gaara dashed through the final patch of brush between he and the battle just in time to see Lee hit a tree with spine crunching force, emitting an outcry. Teal orbs widened in surprise before anger narrowed them to small slits, sand bristling about the confined Kazekage's form.

Eerie, slithering grains lifted Lee's form, a form that glared defiantly into the face of the demon wearing Gaara's skin. He could break this and smash the body before him to pieces, but emotionally his strength was useless. He could not risk killing the body of his most important person.

Slowly pressure began to build upon his form, squeezing with an iron will. Lee hissed with pain before remembering himself. He didn't wish to injure the body too badly, but he'd be _damned_ if he would leave Konoha, not to mention Gaara, to fend without him because of this.

Where he sat on the sidelines, Gaara watched power begin to ripple about Lee's features and recalled clearly what resulted after that. Two gates burst open with enough force to send the sand threatening to crush the Green Beast flying in all directions. He didn't even wait long enough to regain his balance before he hurled the one tail into a tree stepping backwards with elegant pose in place.

Energy clumped the sand that slithered and dripped from Shukaku's form, the red head he inhabited rising with boneless grace to show an insane grin wracking his features. It was not from fear that Lee did not guard himself from the sand raging towards him though. Not fear for _himself_ anyway.

"Gaara-kun, move!"

Without thought the raccoon obeyed, but Lee had no such luck. A heavy knock of sand caught him square in the torso, surging back with him to crush the Green Beast into a tree. Consciousness fled his widened black orbs and he slumped among the grains that had punished him so.

Gaara stood very still, jade orbs on the non-moving form of Lee. His Lee. He watched the trickle of blood slip from pale, perfect lips, hanging precariously on the still chin, threatening to stain that green jumpsuit. He'd fallen because of the Kazekage-he didn't want to hurt him. Lee. He wasn't dead; hell, he'd been through a helluva lot worse.

But he'd been injured due to Gaara. All his fault.

The low chuckle of Shukaku sent Gaara snapping to the present situation, bringing forth an intense anger with it. All of the chakra held in the small raccoon form began to surge and dance, pulsating powerful reds and greens before erupting to a steady blue. Shukaku looked mildly surprised as, not of his own volition, his own chakra began to pulse, clash with the Kage's.

And Gaara wasn't sure if he actually said it or not, but the next thing he knew the Kazekage was snarling, "Bastard," and whether the noise emitted was human or not didn't matter. The chakras wound in the air and began emitting a high pitched wailing, screaming noise as if it were the souls locked in combat, crying with tension, whirling faster and faster until…

With a lurch Gaara left the marionette in every sense of the word, leaving the wood to crumple on the ground in a heap as he sailed straight for his human body. Yet what greeted him were not the leafy green trees of Konoha and a worried Lee when he opened his eyes. Instead he was surrounded by endless windy desert and a pair of sickly yellow gold eyes.

"Welcome to my world, Kazekage."

**-Owari-**

* * *

My complaints- I suck at fight scenes. Lee went down to easily. Otherwise I like this chapter a lot better then the last two.

While I'm usually not like this, the last chapter irked me. Review. Please. I won't even consider posting the next chapter until I'm satisfied with review count. Selfish? Hell yeah, but I'm cranky emotionally right now. I'll apologize later. Thank you all for reading, please review!


	7. Who's Afraid of

**AN-** Hiya there! First off I want to apologize for being a whiny bitch last chapter, I really actually just felt badly emotionally period so I was snippy. But I'd love to thank my reviewers: All of you! They made my day and, even after I was a total emo-pants, still want me to write more. Even if My Chemical Romance Dude said 'I refuse to review' x3. I appreciate that guys, it makes me happy. Oh, and Cruixe who has been reviewing at random chapters x3

To any of you I didn't reply to, I'm SO SO SO SO SO SO sorry! When I was replying my computer decided to randomly die, so then I lost count of where I was and don't remember who I responded to and… So, thank you to you all, I want you to know that it made me feel better.

That's not to say that I don't still want more reviews, but I will most definitely finish. On a random note, this story has 12 favorites and 24 alerts. That makes me giggle.

Sorry this took so long!

**Now to be standard rant**: I dislike CocoaKitty and label that person an ignorant flamer. Criticism is both the good and bad aspects, otherwise it's just putting someone down. Seriously, I review plays and shit. The points the person made on someone's story were false and uncalled for entirely, meant only to put someone down. I loathe people like that with a passion.

**Warning!** By the time this chapter is over, at least one person will want to murder me, or hold me hostage until I finish. Unless it turns out horrible like I think it will and people run away x3

**Disclaimer:** Let's all throw a party because I killed Sakura off. Oh wait, that hasn't happened. Guess I still haven't been able to buy Naruto off Ebay…damn…

* * *

**_Gone Wrong Chapter Seven:_**

_Who's Afraid Of…_

Shukaku let out a roaring, maniacal laugh. His form was considerably smaller here, matching the size of a normal human when he sat back on his haunches as he was now, yet Gaara knew better then to think that gave him any sort of advantage, any sort of lift up. No, Shukaku was just as blood thirsty and deadly no matter the size and he would rip apart the red head at any given opportunity to be free. At least, mentally as if Gaara died physically he'd bite the dust too.

"Shut up," Gaara said after a full minute when the raccoon demon still had not ceased his laughter. This immediately silenced the other, brought a touch of darkness to the looming sandy face before him. He'd irked the demon. But hell, if he was going to die anyway, why not? It had been too many years and the Kazekage was sick of putting up with it. "It's irritating."

"Brat," Shukaku growled in low tones. The maniacal tone had ebbed from his voice, leaving the grainy, slick thrum to reverberate through the air. It wasn't so much an insult as a warning, a promise of long hours of pain and torment.

This didn't scare Gaara. His life had been twisted for so long by the demon that he could no longer feel such a raw emotion due to a threat, empty or full of volition. Instead the red head tilted his gaze to one side, jade orbs settled calmly on the raccoon.

Sand began to spark and spatter from the demon's body, teeth bared in anger. It was almost like static that it drifted in the air, lazy, twitching, reeking of chakra and power. It brushed against Gaara's bare skin threateningly, left bitter red scratches, but the red head made no move to defend himself, not yet. This wasn't where the true torture lay.

A few seconds passed without comment, the one tail beginning to circle, slow, lazily, a demented smirk tugging on his sand-clad muzzle. Gaara stood ever so silently, watching the raccoon lurk with patience, stillness to his form, ready to jerk away.

He was surprised when it was, not with sand, but with the literal physical form that Shukaku attacked. An insane, high pitched wail escaped that grainy façade and the body charged forward, slamming into Gaara with the full brunt of his shoulder. The red head, caught off guard, had only seconds to reach out his arm and snag hold of the follow up punch that attempted to catch him in the jaw, in turn keeping his balance. His other hand came up to catch the other fist, gripping tight. Lean, toned muscles strained against the brawn that was Shukaku, bulging outwards from pale flesh, beads of sweat forming along his skin.

Backwards, farther and farther Gaara was pushed, the body above him causing his spine to bow, curve in a most painful angle. His knees locked in and he shoved upwards as hard as he could, gaining a little ground in which to take a step forward. A hand clutching to Shukaku released, the slender body avoiding the released pressure that caused the limb to shoot forward as in turn his own hand came up, punching the male square in the chest and knocking the demon backwards.

The demon was unfazed, as expected, and the ever present insane grin got just a little bit bigger. He let off one of those shocking peals of laughter that displayed his glee, a deadly glint entering his cold golden hues.

"How about we play a little game, eh boy?"

Immediately Gaara was on guard again. What Shukaku considered fun was often cruel and unusual. Hell, it wasn't just OFTEN cruel and unusual, it was. He let out a little hiss of discontent and cocked his head to one side, looking wary. "No."

But that wasn't an answer that would be easily accepted by such a demon. He chuckled darkly and the sandy, windswept surroundings began to shake and shudder, the very color and reality of the scene melting away, blurring into darkness. Suddenly Gaara was no longer in the wasteland of what he would label his own soul, but in a place far too familiar for his liking, in a time even less comforting, a scenario he'd long repressed.

The sky was a deep azure, painted with stars like diamonds scattered across deep velvet. The buildings around him were all quiet, darkness in every window, no light to guide his way or stir him from this nightmare that was all too real. A form lay sprawled at the base of the building nearest him, another one crouched at its side. Horrible, cracking sobs echoed through the area, resonating outwards through the city. Yet Gaara could not bring his eyes away from that form, laying in a pool of blood against that building with labored breathing…

"Gaara-kun…"

The red head's teal gaze widened and he, despite himself, instinctively took a step backwards. His heart did a heavy tap dance in his chest, his body feeling drowned and his lungs watery.

"…Uncle Yashamaru…"

This scene was not a nightmare, oh no. It was real, a memory, one of the ones that haunted him every time the chance arose. His uncle, dying by his own hand, his smaller self crouched beside the body, understanding, young, impressionable. An ache stirred in his chest, a rough caress of sandpaper to his rib cage, stealing his breath.

Here it came, Yashamaru would tell his younger self that he never loved him. He was a mistake, he would never be loved, he was a monster. Something was off though…

Drowning, dying blue eyes passed right over the small child to rest on Gaara. They fell there heavily, with meaning and acknowledgment. Blood stained lips parted, a soft voice wrenching from the depths of the dying form.

"You should just die, Gaara," the blonde man whispered. The glitter of gold hinting in the irises of the blue eyes was not lost on the Kazekage, but he couldn't pull away from the scene. Guilt and pain still rested too heavily upon his battered soul. "You left your village to the mercy of others once. They no longer want you. You are weak, you break everything you touch."

Insecurities were prying open and now there was no Kankuro to assure him that he was wrong or confide in. There was no Naruto to punch him solid in the face and scream at him. There was no Temari to give him a comforting embrace after he'd emotionally drained on his brother.

There was no Lee to come to his defense and soothe him with his voice.

"You nearly killed him before, Gaara." The voice coming out of Yashamaru was no longer that of his long dead uncle, but the Kazekage didn't care, nor place the change. "He would never want you anyway."

B-bump. B-bump. B-bump. Pain clouded Gaara's vision, the control he had begun to build up over the years cracking brutally beneath the assault. He shook his head, placed it in his hands with a scream building in his chest. It was wrong, this was not his uncle, he had not even known of Lee then. But it was right, this WAS his uncle, and he was right, and everything was a mess…

His mind leaped and clawed, searching desperately for something that would anchor him even as it tore itself apart. If he lost it the demon would win and there was a chance he would never wake up. Memories of blood came tumbling through his mind, his sand splattering everywhere drenched in blood, screams of pain…

_Kankuro picking him up and aiding in their escape. Lee screaming to warn him about Kimimaro's attack. Lee attempting to protect him… _

The Kazekage's tensed spine began to ease.

_Speaking with his brother overlooking the horizon, late night talks with the visiting green beast, Naruto calling him a friend, his comrades coming to aid him…_

Hunched shoulders relaxed.

_"This would be rather awkward if you really were Gaara. But I do believe that I am in love with the Kazekage. I would protect him with my life. He is my dearest comrade, my special person."_

If nothing else, Lee was there. Hadn't he always been?

An easy breath melted from the red head's lips. Shukaku ripped himself free of Yashamaru's corpse, looking pleased with himself, but the expression dimmed upon seeing the smug expression tugging on the Kazekage's expression. Eyes surrounded by black insomnia rose, settled on the demon with the most defiant of expressions.

"You're wrong."

Surprise graced the raccoon demon's face, but he didn't backpedal even as Gaara stood, his grin widening. And it wasn't a very nice grin. It wasn't meant to be either. "What do you mean?" Shukaku inquired. His voice contained all of its previous haughtiness, yet his golden gaze narrowed with wariness.

Inwardly Gaara smirked. Oooh yes, he knew something that the raccoon bastard didn't.

"He does want me," Gaara said coolly. He advanced a few steps towards the one tail and, in his surprise, Shukaku let the illusion slip. They were once again in that desert of Gaara's soul. "He told me so himself."

In an effort to regain the upper hand (a rather lame one at that Gaara noted with disdain) Shukaku growled, "He'll only end up hurting you again, he's lying!"

But Gaara was beyond that. He was calm again, he was the Kazekage and he would do whatever it took to return to guarding those who were most precious to him. He paused, gave a wry smile and a chuckle that was dark and low and reminiscent of the times when slaughter had been his only agenda.

"Lee is incapable of lying, demon."

A tremble ran down the demon's spine. Not fear, certainly, but a sort of rage. His gaze narrowed and he snarled, "DAMN YOU," launching himself at the red head.

* * *

Lee groaned as he woke, sprawled against the tree. He felt dizzy, sick to his stomach, totally and utterly drained. It took a moment before he remembered just exactly where he was, and another to remember what had conspired. He was on his feet within seconds, wondering how much time had passed but even more importantly, where Gaara was.

"Lee!" Shouted a voice. Onyx eyes slid upwards at a subtle rustle of leaves and the Godaime Hokage fell in a crouch at his side, holding up the statue. A grimace was on her pretty lips and that was all the Green Beast needed to see to know that all was not well. He gingerly took the statue from her and held it in both hands. "I couldn't find the answer to your question."

Shit.

Instead of crying out in frustration, Lee turned his attention to the more pressing matter at hand-finding Gaara's body. He was surprised to find the Kazekage crumpled on the ground a few feet away from him, the marionette motionless not too far from that. A cold chill ran down his spine and he took a step forward, crouching at his side.

"We're running out of time Lee," Tsunade said at his side. "You must decide."

Lee was going to inquire just what they were running out of time for when the red head gave a spasm on the earth, his entire body arching upwards, a cry that was a mix of Shukaku and the red head falling from pale lips. His limbs jerked as if on an unpracticed puppet master's strings, the scream rising in volume and pitch…

The Green Beast steeled himself. He had to do it. His legs straightened and he stood upwards, his gaze fluttering downwards to the writhing male. Please let this work. If it killed Gaara…The thought made his throat tighten and tears prickle his eyes, but he knew what he had to do. He had to risk it.

"I am sorry Gaara-kun," he whispered before his fist collided solidly with the statue. A moment passed before, with a groaning noise, cracks began to splinter all along the cool stone. Golden light erupted from the cracks and the entire statue burst, exploding outwards to imbed into trees, crumble to the ground, dissolving into nothingness.

* * *

The struggle paused when a sudden lurching motion overtook the scenery and it WASN'T a change. It occurred again, the desert sands hissing and sliding, rising into the air and emitting sounds like static shock. Gaara looked at the scene with mild interest, Shukaku grinning like the cat who had just caught the canary.

White hot pain erupted within the Kazekage's chest and he dropped to his knees, struggling for breath, clutching to his chest and emitting a strangled noise. His vision began to blur around the edges, black and heavy, white spots dancing all over his surroundings. What was happening? Gaara couldn't place it, but it hurt oh so badly…

"See you in hell, Kazekage…" Shukaku laughed darkly as darkness enveloped the red head.

And outside the inner turmoil, Lee let out a cry of anguish as the Kazekage's body stilled.

* * *

FUFUFUFU!

There's still another chapter to go, so don't you DARE stop reading. And oh, as a warning, I have an extreme dislike for angst recently. Hint. Hint.

It's muh birthday bitches. Review, do it now. Please kay thank you!


	8. Close Your Eyes and Pray

**AN-** I'm baaaaaaaaaaaaack! Not much to say here. Still not feeling the 'year older thing'. You never do or so I'm told.

So I lied, there will be one chapter after this. This will be the 'suspense' chapter -Grin-. I figured, 'hey, we haven't focused enough on other characters'. Don't get me wrong, I adore Gaara and Lee ( you don't even know about the Lee thing xD) but…ya know, suspense.

…Oh and… I GOT A LEE PLUSHIE FOR MY BIRTHDAY! AND SHIKA AND ITACHI!!! YOSH!!! There might've been another plushie (I don't even know what it was actually) on the way for me but we think it got stolen from the mail… DAMNIT!

**Warnings-** Me dragging things out, Kankuro's foul mouth, LeeGaa. (Gotta get myself in the habit of listing the pairings right…I tend to do it alphabetically… can't help it X.x )

**Disclaimer-** I wish….

* * *

_**Gone Wrong Chapter Eight:** _

_Close Your Eyes and Pray_

Tick tock. Tick tock.

Emerald eyes rose from behind brown locks, resting on the clock ticking merrily away on the wall, unaware of the battle for life or death going on in the hospital room nearby. He almost resented the damned piece of machinery, oblivious to the world around it. Of course, being angry with inanimate objects was stupid and childish.…

But damnit, Kankuro felt like being a little childish and didn't he have the right to when his little brother was still unconfirmed on life? Yeah, that's right.

Weary hands rested on a tanned, unpainted face, a sigh passing tightly clenched fingers. It felt like hours had gone by, yet, if that clock were any indicator it had barely reached a single one. Worry nagged at his heart and kept him firmly rooted to the chair, ignoring the hunger pains untreated from the fast travel across the desert to Konoha.

Speaking of fast…

Kankuro looked up, gaze following Gai as he paced back and forth across the little waiting room hall leading to the emergency room. A grim smile down turned the puppet nin's lips. He was indefinitely grateful to the man.

After the group had discovered the Suna nin's hospital room abandoned, an unwitting Temari sprawled unconscious with sand dusting the floor, Gai had rented a carriage from god knows where and sprinted with all of that magnificent speed across the desert sands. He'd run the damn wheels off! But the entire team, an insistent Crimson included, arrived only three hours after the battle.

Now the red head was inside that room with Tsunade, helping.

Somehow, for reasons no one would or could take two seconds to stop and tell them about, Lee had gotten hospitalized too. So now they all waited, Gai, Temari, admittedly Kankuro, and strangely Neji resembling anxious mother cats.

Thinking that made Kankuro ponder and, after a moment, deem that Gaara would have been amused. 'Kitty man' waiting like a cat. Ha. Ha. Ha.

No.

Nurses ran by wheeling people on carts, well wishers dropped in and left. Time trickled by slowly, like sand in a glass that Gaara used to play with long before the 'Yashamaru' incident. The brunette cringed.

"Gaara," he murmured aloud. His hands slid away from his face to knuckle on his knees, pangs of regret echoing in his chest. A day didn't go by now that he didn't wonder and wish he'd been a better brother. What could have happened? Would things still be the same?

Chances were that their… it disgusted him to even think it… _father_, the Kazekage, would have tried to kill him too. And succeed. Then the cycle of destruction would have been fed another catalyst and he wouldn't have been there to help the wounded heart when Gaara finally started to believe in life again, not just death.

Orange appeared in Kankuro's vision and he looked upwards to the grim face of Naruto. This served to perplex the puppet master. Hadn't it only been ten minutes ago that the future Hokage had claimed 'I'll be back in two hours'? Emerald eyes went to the clock. It had been 10 PM when Naruto had said that…

It was midnight. Ah.

Instead of pacing, Gai now sat in the chair two seats from Kankuro, looking even more antsy. Kakashi had strategically placed himself in the lap of the other to keep him from moving even more and had his little orange book out, reading. Neji had taken the position of pacer and Temari had returned from her bathroom trip to lean restlessly against the wall. Shikamaru had joined them again and sat in a chair on the other side of Kankuro, fingers pressed together before his face in a contemplative manner.

"You need to eat," Naruto said, voice firm. His head rose, blue eyes skimming the hallway. "All of you."

Immediately he was met with resistance. Neji actually growled, Temari glared, Kankuro glared, Shikamaru yawned, and Gai smiled weakly in the most friendly gesture of any of them.

"I ate before the trip," the Green Beast tried to say in a reassuring tone. Seeing as he'd RUN the entire way across the trip dragging quite a few people and that had been some hours ago, this didn't serve to placate Naruto much. Or at all.

"Guys," Naruto growled irritably, "don't make me drag you into the damn cafeteria. I SWEAR I'll come get you as soon as Gaara wakes up or…or whatever." The last part came out uncertain and didn't help his demands.

But, grudgingly, Kakashi stood. Gai looked ready to actually complain before he, with a sigh, stood as well. Neji stopped his pacing, looking haughty, and Temari slowly stood straight, a frown marring her suntanned face. Only Kankuro and Shikamaru remained sitting, the former staring blankly at the orange clad ninja.

Kankuro opened his mouth to deny the request, to say flat out no, anything with a negative effect, when he noticed the lazy nin looking at him with a most serious expression, as he would often do to Chouji when he was being silly or self conscious. He returned the mocha colored stare with one of his own, daring the strategist to tell him to leave, try to order him. Tired or not, that was his little brother in there damnit, the little brother that had confessed to him his wild desire to be Kazekage, his desire to protect the ones he loved and be accepted by the village…

"Kankuro," Shikamaru said seriously after a moment. This was unusual as he usually referred to him as 'puppet guy'. "You look like you're sick. If you're not going to sleep, at least eat something. Gaara'll be pissy if he wakes up to find his older brother moping."

And damn it all, when it sank in, Kankuro laughed. He laughed a deep, belly clutching, chest aching bark that sounded slightly hysterical from days of stress. He laughed because it was true; he laughed because he felt like crying. But Kankuro could not cry. He was a shinobi and crying was for the weak and he was _not_ weak, even if he was the weakest of the sand siblings. But oh god his little brother was in there and there were _so_ many things he had left to watch him grow through and if he lost him… He was weak because he could do nothing. He was weak because he hadn't been able to help Gaara. He was weak because he should have BEEN THERE…

Yet he held the tears at bay, if but barely. He tried to calm himself and succeeded a bit. God, he must have really been tired to let himself slip like that…

With a frown plastered to his lips (he would go, but damnit he would NOT go about this like a cheerful little bitch, happy to follow orders!) the Puppet Master stood. His legs wobbled a bit upon the first weight, but quickly grew used to the feeling so that within seconds his hands were jammed into his pockets and he was stalking down the hallway towards the front bit of the hospital where the cafeteria lay, head bowed, sulking. Had to keep up his image after all.

The swinging doors gave under the brunt of his shoulder and Kankuro stalked within, scowling about at the few occupants of the room. He felt the others come and enter behind him but he didn't bother sparing them a glance, instead letting out a reproachful grumble and going to the counter, glaring rather artfully at the young brunette who worked there.

"What will you have?" She asked, voice low and sweet, yet a sliver of nervousness twanged there. Kankuro almost felt bad. Key word being almost.

"Whatever's not toxic," he grumbled in response. His gaze swiveled over his shoulder as he waited, watching the other nin speak to one another, before she caught his attention again.

"There you are sir, chicken strips and a bottled water."

Chicken eh? Kankuro slapped down the money requested on the counter and turned, going to the nearest table and plopping down. His stomach decided to make its presence known then with a growl and suddenly he agreed whole heartedly with Naruto that he needed to eat. Now. So, this in mind, he picked up one of the hopefully-not-toxic-because-it's-hospital-food chicken pieces and took a bite.

He blinked. Not bad. Well, in the way of hospital food and he wasn't dying sooo…

A minute or so later Neji joined him at the table with nothing but a bottle of orange juice. Smart ass. Kankuro deemed it unnecessary to make comment and instead took a drink of his water, keen gaze sliding towards the doors. Unfortunately, something had been nagging at him lately and, being the man that he was, he just couldn't leave it alone…

So he abruptly turned back to the white-eyed male, deep green eyes set in a penetrating look that just bordered on a glare. "What are your intentions with Lee, Hyuuga?" Because he'd seen the rather disturbingly hungry looks the prodigy gave a one Rock Lee and he wasn't ABOUT to let Gaara's happiness get stolen right from under him.

A rather blasé look was slid over Kankuro, a cool smirk upturning the Hyuuga's lips. "That's none of your concern, is it lackey?"

Oh. He. Did. NOT.

An audible growl perked in Kankuro's chest, his teeth bared slightly as he growled, "Actually, _bitch_," there was a definite flicker of agitation in the other's gaze at the derogatory term, "it is of my concern. He is, after all, my little brother's."

Anger, jealousy, the Puppet master couldn't place just exactly what it was, but something sparked in the other male's eyes. His voice lost the taunting for a more dead tone as he shot back, "Oh? And what would that be, _neko whore._"

The rest of the group was quiet around them, frozen from the tension, ready to spring and pry apart the male's at a second's notice. Tension radiated through the air like a finely pulled bow string, thrummed and rippled in waves of chakra that weren't suppressed. Someone was going to snap it was only a matter of time. The odds were on Kankuro, observing the pressure having been applied to him in the past week and the lack of sleep.

Yet, to everyone's surprise, he didn't attempt to throttle the Hyuuga just then. Instead he kept his voice as calm as he could get it, the undertones a low and dark growl that promised this to be his last safe statement before it got really ugly. "The Fuzzy Brow is Gaara's confidant, you petty slut. They're good for each other and it's obvious there's love there. If I have any say in it, you won't lay a filthy hand on Lee ever aga-"

SNAP.

In a flash of motion Neji was up, palm lashing out in gentle fist style to strike at Kankuro. However the puppet master, despite popular belief, could be rather fast on his feet and was up, wincing as the chakra brushed against his left arm, but using his right to snag hold of the Hyuuga, twist his arm around and smash him down onto the floor. The table had sounded more tempting, but then he'd have to pay for the damages…

"Hey, stop that," growled Shikamaru, looking like he'd rather be taking a nice long nap then deal with the dueling pair.

Kankuro backed away, giving the still grounded Hyuuga the wary eye. Winded, Neji stood up, glaring daggers at the other male. He looked like he was contemplating rushing the other and, just as the puppet master reached back to touch the scrolls on his back…

One of the doors opened and a sharp whistle caught everyone's attention. In the doorway stood Crimson and Tsunade, one female to either side, grinning like the cat that had caught the canary. Kankuro's heart leaped into his throat. If they were out that meant…

Before Tsunade could even begin to tell them about the procedure Kankuro was running out past them. A moment later Gai followed suit, Temari hot on his heels.

Crimson watched them go, a little smile playing on her lips. Tsunade looked ready to throttle something, yet her expression softened after a moment and she shook her head, blonde pigtails swaying back and forth as she chuckled.

"Job well done Tsunade-sama," the red head female said, bowing gracefully. Then her green gaze rose, carefully guarded. "I hope they take the news well."

The smile faded a bit around the edges and the Godaime Hokage inclined her head. "As do I Crimson." The doors to the cafeteria swung shut as they began to down the hallway. Kankuro and his entourage came sliding around the corner from the emergency room hallway, barreling towards the room where Gaara and Lee now lay. She added in an almost grimaced whisper, "As do I…"

**-Owari-

* * *

**

Cliffy! Sorta… And just what is it that the medics are talking about? . We'll see next chapter now, won't we? XD

Things I liked about this chapter- I love Kankuro. He's excellent. Even if I can't write at all…

Things I hated about this chapter- Pretty much everything. Since when have I liked anything having to do with my writing?

I like the idea of Kankuro and Neji bashing each other. Well, actually, I hate Neji, so I like the idea of Neji being bashed. And personally, I think that Temari and Kankuro would be tied for strength, only in different areas, but since this is not my personal opinion… Gah… Just go with it. It pains me.

Reviews will make me smile!


	9. The End and a Fresh Beginning

**AN-** …-Sobs loudly- Your reviews all made me so happy!!!

**WARNING-** IT'S FINALLY HERE! It's nothing graphic, hell they aren't even making out ( T-T I wish! ) but… MUAHAHAHAHAHAHA! LEEGAA!!! FINALLY!!! Oh, and Neji being a bitch. Sorry Neji fans. Blame it on hormones if you must x3. Oh, and crappy chapter title ;D

**Disclaimer-** …Lee and Gaara aren't making out (on camera. We all know what's going on behind the scenes ;D ) so it's not mine. CURSE YOU E-BAY BIDDERS, CURSE YOUUUUUUU!!!

* * *

_**Gone Wrong Final Chapter**_

_The End and a Fresh Beginning_

Light…Gaara let out a soft groan, bruised eyelids fluttering open. Too much light. Teal eyes cringed against the lights above, unable to summon a full on glare. Why was it that hospital lights had to be so damn bright?

A buzzing noise reached his ears, a steady drone like the humming of a hive. Gradually the buzz lessened until he could hear voices, each familiar. The Kazekage attempted to tell them to all shut up, but his throat was raw and he instantly regret it as all that emerged was a sort of 'squawk' and a thunderous pain. Ow damnit!

He felt as if someone had dealt him several different blows to every region of his body unmercifully, almost like the effect of the Chunin exams. Almost being key here as now he was tired, drained of energy. It was how he felt in the grips of the Akatsuki statue before…

The mental image this retrieved brought a grimace to the red head's lips so he decided to stop that train of thought. It was mostly a blur now anyway involving pain, angry Shukaku, and his comrades. There were more pressing matters at hand at this very moment. Where was he? Why did he feel like this?

A larger question loomed over these two, sudden and harsh. Where was Lee?

Everything flooded back to him. The presents, pain, trips under desert moonlight, the confession, the fight…Blatantly disregarding the fact that he felt as if he'd been squished by a steam roller, Gaara sat bolt upright. His surroundings spun about wildly at the sudden shift and the ensuing gasps around him didn't help.

"Gaara!" Temari shouted. When his vision cleared he found her eyes, large and drowning blue, swimming in his vision.

Even if he'd been able to, the Kazekage probably still wouldn't have said anything at that moment. Her arms tugged him into an embrace, surprisingly gentle yet so affectionate he felt warm and secure. She was shaking and murmuring 'thank you' over and over again.

Even before she was fully retracted another weight was there, another familiar warmth. The sand didn't even make a twinge against this presence and Gaara knew who it was before he even spoke.

"You're awake, eh brat?" Kankuro's arms held loosely to the least battered of Gaara's two, forehead against his shoulder. Where Temari had been shaking, the puppet master was perfectly steady. He mumbled a soft, "Glad you're all right little brother," before his head rose, cheeky grin in place. "Wouldn't want Temari to be Kazekage, eh?"

The eldest sibling let out a growl, but before violence could ensue there was a boisterous call of, "Oi, Gaara!"

Brilliant in orange, as always, Naruto beamed from the end of his bed. "Finally decided to get up, eh? Heh, these guys were all worried but I knew better."

There was a unanimous sigh of, "Naruto…" from around the room and the future Rokudaime Hokage grinned, his gaze softening upon his friend.

"Seriously man, good to see you back."

Kakashi and Shikamaru gave their regards in the form of nods, which Gaara returned in kind. A mildly blushing Chouji placed a fruit basket at the foot of his bed and mumbled a 'get well'.

No Gai or Neji. Even more importantly…

His ability to speak still very raw, Gaara opted to give Kankuro a look instead. It was a purely Gaara look, one that said 'you're obligated to do something'. Emerald clashed on teal, examined it, noted the tensed color of the orbs…

"Ah, you mean Lee," the puppet master nodded and shifted a bit, removing himself from Gaara's view of the other half of the room.

There lay Lee. Gaara's heart twisted in his chest a bit. The Green Beast was sleeping, heart rate monitor beeping softly at his side. Black locks lay about his face in disarray, a heavy bandage wound around his forehead and another about his bare torso. Blankets lay at his feet, pooled there from uneasy rest.

Beside him sat Gai, who turned then to smile as best he could to Gaara. The usual exuberant boom of his voice was flickering and dim but for some reason the red head couldn't bring himself to be happy about this. "Glad you're all right Gaara-sama."

From the doorway Tsunade cleared her throat. "We have good news and bad news."

"The bad news is," Crimson stepped into the room, ruby curls obscuring her face as she read from a clipboard, "Gaara is virtually one gigantic bruise and has chakra fatigue. Lee has three bruised ribs, a minor concussion, a lot of bruises randomly scattered across his body, sand scratches, and major muscle and body fatigue."

"The good news is," Tsunade intervened, stopping Naruto who looked close to shouting at the cat eared female, "that due to the circumstances it is amazing that both are still alive. They'll be making a full recovery in no time and Lee's sedatives will be wearing off…Speak of the devil."

Gaara's heart leaped and twisted again. In his bed Lee was stirring, onyx eyes fluttering a bit until they opened, struggling to focus it seemed. He yawned and rubbed one eye, smiling in a still dazed state at the room before he sat up…

And flinched as his ribs gave protest. The Green Beast was no stranger to pain though and regained control of his features within a moment, alertness sharpening his visage.

'Lee,' Gaara thought with relief. Widened eyes suddenly turned upon him, delight and joy rushing up onto Lee's features.

"Ga-" was all Lee could get out before he was cringing, clutching his throat. A nurse came in conveniently moments later, two small cups in hand filled with water, and gave one to each patient.

"One of the side effects of the items used to keep you unconscious," Tsunade said in an apologetic tone, "it will be easily dispelled by water."

The red head took the cup from the nurse and was pleasantly surprised to the reminder that he was _human_. He had, on some level or another, registered this before, but making use of one of the many human benefits was all the more satisfying this way. As expected the water was like a cold, refreshing bit of life against his burning throat and Gaara took a moment, as any good desert creature, to savor it, eyes slipping shut against the room.

"Gaara-kun," it was soft, but Lee's voice was definitely returning. Teal orbs opened to slide over the sweat pants clad taijutsu master. He had shifted, hidden what little exposed skin there had been beneath a sheet. A small, almost shy smile upturned his lips and relief registered in his dark gaze.

Two seconds later Tsunade declared, "Everybody out!"

Naruto, who had just been on the verge of exclaiming at Lee, turned to pout at Tsunade. "Maaaaah, but Baa-chan…"

The Kazekage watched everyone file out, Naruto being dragged out by the Godaime. Almost everyone left except...

Crimson paused at the door, frowning. "Kankuro. Out. Now."

Emerald eyes slid over Gaara in concern. "Just give me one…"

"No, you can do that later. OUT."

Kankuro remained stubbornly still. Crimson heaved a long sigh, stalking back into the room and plastering on her most professional face.

"Fine. I'll tell you what piece we were waiting to tell Gaara alone…And an interesting bit." She adjusted her glasses. "Two people in this room are pregnant, Kankuro. You're now going to be an uncle and a father."

Poor poor Kankuro. Fatigue and stress caught him blind side and he gaped, shoulders sagging, mouth slack jawed. "B-but I…and you said…and _he…_"

This effectively allowed Crimson to haul him out, beaming at the pair in the doorway. "I lied by the way. Shock always makes people so much more reasonable. Ah, but if only you _were_ pregnant, your kids would be so- GAH!"

The door shut as a rush of sand slashed outwards.

Gaara waited for their voices to fade ( "you know you love me!" "shut up, do not" "aww, don't be mad! I was only kidding about Gaara!" "I guess he does need some ti…WHAT?! What about you?! Hey, get back here…" ) before he turned his attention to Lee. The Green beast sat, legs dangling over the side of the bed, arms crossed in an almost self-conscious manner over the portion of his chest that was unbandaged. He was looking at the ground, large brows furrowed, face set in an expression of self-doubt that he rarely wore.

"So," Lee said. The softness in his voice was no longer pain induced, but settled on a shy melancholy Gaara had heard few times before. "How does it feel to be in a human body again?"

"Motion is different," Gaara admitted, flexing his fingers as he spoke, "But otherwise," his voice took a bitter undertone, "it's just the same. Never have been much of a human."

"No!" Lee shouted sharply. Fisted hands came down on the bed and it moaned in protest. Gaara looked silently at the other male as he winced in pain and…that self doubt again. Powerful arms rose over his chest, voice soft. "This is not right Gaara-kun. You are human and deserve…everything, like all other people."

Silence again. Lee seemed to be struggling with himself, arms over chest, rocking a bit but not to the extent to pain himself. The Kazekage watched the motion with something near irritation.

"Why do you do that?" The red head finally asked. Lee looked up curiously and Gaara gestured with the arm that hadn't taken abuse, "Hide yourself? There's nothing wrong with you."

Lee colored a bit, shook his head. "I am covered in scars."

"All of us carry scars, Lee," Gaara responded, tone dull, "some are just emotional. You received those protecting allies and, yes, killing. We are shinobi." It was odd talking so much, but this was Lee and he'd done it before. That somehow made it okay.

Although he didn't appear to agree, Lee lowered his arms.

"It is true." After a moment of silence Lee's voice caught the red head's attention away from the chest he had been scrutinizing, "What I said in the desert. It is true."

Raw silence consumed them, looming like a predator ready to suffocate. Lee's expressive eyes were downcast, melancholy, but Gaara couldn't ease the pressure immediately. He let out a shuddering breath or two, hands fisting in the sheets.

It was too late to go back now. Gaara's smile was brittle. He could no longer hide, couldn't deny the existence of emotion. It was there, whether he wanted it or not. He cared about Lee and Lee… Well… What had he said in defense against his demon earlier? Had he not accepted it then?

Lee, there was always Lee.

The Green Beast has said he loved Gaara and he believed that. Due to years of respect and knowledge and building emotions that related to…affection, Gaara trusted him. He'd seen the utter devotion, the talent, the literal inability to lie. But that didn't mean he could say it.

Even if he wanted to, Sabaku no Gaara wouldn't be able to say 'I love you' seriously, know full well what it meant. Not yet, for many years probably. The trauma was too great. Yet, if Lee loved him he'd understand, right? The twisted, hot, knotted feeling, the safety and comfort and need to be near…would that be enough until he was ready to say it?

If not, hope was lost.

"Lee," Gaara started slowly, but was interrupted.

"It is okay Gaara-kun." Lee's voice was hard, frighteningly unemotional like when he was out to kill. The face turned upon him was stony, set for pain, a warriors face, yet the eyes…Oh god his eyes drowned in emotion and if Gaara didn't look away he would drown, yet if he did he'd die anyway of deprivation. "I did not mean to make you feel pressure."

"Lee," Gaara fought the pain in his voice. 'Stop looking at me like that!' He thought despairingly. "I cannot say that I…That I love you." He shook his head. "It would be empty, a lie. I don't know what that is and I don't know if I ever will know." Lee didn't flinch, only kept stone faced. "However…"

He did look fazed then. Onyx eyes fluttered to the Kazekage's, curiosity there. It lessened the painful knot in Gaara's chest somehow.

"I feel ill when you're injured and your presence is…calming." Gaara let his eyes close. Better to not see the malicious grin that was sure to form and crush him once more. "When you are here in Konoha and I in Suna I miss you, think about you whenever time can be spend and…sometimes when it cannot be. I…I…"

Damn it all! Anger spun lazily in Gaara's chest and he could feel sand like an extension of his anger swirling around. He could never express himself and here he was, god damn well holding his heart out as best he knew, and he couldn't do it properly!

"Gaara…"

No suffix, no anger or scorn or laughter. It was affectionate. Cautiously the Kazekage opened his eyes, surprised to find Lee at his bedside, ignoring the swirling sands as if they were nothing. A warm smile curled up the Green Beast's features, one that brought a flutter to Gaara's stomach, a tinge of rose to his cheeks, and stilled the raging sand.

A tanned, battle worn hand rose to brush over a porcelain cheek, delicate, barely there, but just enough to elicit sparks wherever the skin touched. Gaara's heart fluttered, but it wasn't a bad or frightening feeling. This was Lee anyway, no harm could be from this male. It was like the warmth of those nights sleeping under the stars or in his arms, or the rush of watching him bathe. Or even before those times when Lee would drift off watching a movie and end up leaning on Gaara, or when Lee would teach him taijutsu and would cheer when Gaara mastered a kata.

Only now Gaara was himself, not a raccoon. Now they were even closer and the Kazekage trusted him and…

Lee's eyes hooded a bit, hand curling gingerly about Gaara's chin, not gripping, but just enough to tilt the red head's face upwards. Eyes of pure, relaxed aqua trained on the expressive boy's and their foreheads brushed, noses touching.

"Is this all right?" Lee murmured.

There was no thinking needed. Gaara responded, "Yes," within a second.

That was it. No more boundary to that. Centimeters, millimeters…Gaara's nerves leaped and bristled pleasantly when Lee's breath met his and he didn't wait for the lips to catch his to let his gaze close.

BANG!

Maybe he should have.

Gaara was very ready to kill someone when, just before their lips brushed, the door popped open. Lee was leaning backwards to look in surprise at the door.

"Neji-san!" Lee called. His voice gave a wobble at the sudden change of pitch. "What are you-"

"Shut up," hissed Neji before he descended upon the pair like a white clad storm. "What is it that you think you're doing?" he growled, stalking near the bed. Lee backed away warily. Not from fear, if it came down to it the Green Beast could subdue the other fatigue or not, but in case Neji swung and missed.

Gaara could defend himself, Lee was testament to that, but he would not be held responsible for a one time mishap.

Problem was, Lee didn't want to hurt Neji either. They were comrades. Long gone were the days when Neji could overturn him in a fight without breaking a sweat. Now the fights would last hours and be rough and Lee's losses were becoming fewer and fewer. Yet, without weights, Lee would probably have to refrain from fighting unless he wanted things to get…messy.

"Neji," Lee's tone has slipped again to that eerie calm. "I do not know what you are talking about."

"Of course you do," Neji sneered, stalking closer. Lee's fingers brushed against the side of the heart rate monitor as he backed against his bed.

Bad place to be. Shit.

Yet Lee pretended he didn't notice the angry, possessive stance Neji had taken and sat demurely on the bed. "No Neji-san, I do not."

Gaara's eyes narrowed dangerously on the Hyuuga's back, sand hissing as it created friction in the air. He wasn't showing it, but the Kazekage could feel Lee's discomfort as tangible as his own anger. Neji came into the room knowing he was playing with fire, but he didn't know the half of it.

There was a definite warning to Gaara's voice when Neji picked Lee up by the throat. "Hyuuga," it was the only warning he'd get.

Lee felt the vulnerability like a stabbing, searing pain, maybe a forewarning of the sensation to come. No fear lit his gaze, only a steely resolve. "Neji, I do not want to fight in a hospital." His gaze fluttered to Gaara and understanding was met.

"Then don't," the grip on Lee's throat eased, war callused finger pads upturning the taijutsu specialist's chin, "You _are_ mine Rock Lee."

Numb surprise hit Lee, just as possessive lips caught his own. A split second later and Lee folded backwards, fist coming out to knock Neji away. Before he could react sand entwined his body, jerked the male further from the Green Beast.

Neji was no master of strength, but he wasn't weak by any means. The loose grip the sand had exploded outwards as Neji bound to his feet. Lee stood, slapping a hand down on the power to the heart monitor that kicked it to life and immediately unearthed a shrill wailing noise.

Moments later the door burst open and Kankuro stood, eyes narrowed upon the gentle fist user. Gaara was up, though he obviously shouldn't have been. The sudden entrance caught Neji in the midst of coming around the bed after Lee.

"I respected you once," Kankuro drawled. He strode into the room and still Neji pursued the Green Beast. "Then you fucked with my brother!"

Neji turned at the outburst, sliding low to avoid a hit he'd been positive was coming at his face. This had been expected though and instead a knee caught him in the jaw, sending him to slam against a wall.

"Neji! Kankuro!"

Kankuro spun about, Neji pulling himself to his feet to glare at Crimson. She stood in the doorway drawn by the wail of the monitor, hands clenched, shaking furiously.

"Get the hell out of this room, NOW!"

"Bu-" Kankuro started, looking surprised.

"No! Get out! Neji, go see Tsunade."

The Hyuuga spat, rubbed his jaw. There was blood there in the motion, but he didn't grimace. He was far too proud. "You hold no control over me, foreigner."

"But I am a medic. Medic speech is law when lives are in danger, especially in hospitals. Besides, you are endangering my leader. Your ally." She spoke harshly, tongue like the lash of a spiked whip. "Do you wish for there to be war?"

A bitter growl tore from Neji's lips and he shoved his way out. Kankuro was considerably more quiet exiting and he didn't expect the sigh of, "thank you" emitted from the red head female. He accepted it though and moved on.

"Five more minutes, then we're going to patch Lee up a bit more. Get back in that bed Kazekage-sama."

The door swung closed and, despite his body's willingness to comply, Gaara had a strange urge to stand just to spite her. He let it go rather quickly though and his body eased back on the bed, jade bleeding back to aqua at Lee's look of concern. It was eerie how the Green Beast could elicit such emotions with just one look.

Unspoken words fluttered between them, silent confirmations of well being. Lee, looking relieved, turned off the heart rate monitor and sat down at Gaara's side, almost close enough to touch but not quite. They were quiet for a minute or so before Lee spoke.

"I am sorry about Neji-san, Gaara," The name was spoken tentatively as if he was deciding whether to add a suffix or not. "He is not usually so…" He looked a bit pained.

"Asinine?" Gaara filled in. The other male shot him a look that was half amusement and half a reluctant sort of agreement.

"I suppose," Lee admitted. Battle scarred hands, hands that could crush bone with the greatest of ease, were tentative in brushing over the virtually unblemished Kazekage's. Gaara didn't startle at the contact, only grew very still.

Onyx and aqua eyes met, Lee flushing heavily and murmuring his apology. It took a moment after the Green Beast's hand had retracted before Gaara could respond, reaching out to take a firm grip on the powerful digits. Dark orbs fluttered to the side in a glance before the grip twisted, fingers lacing together.

The strange affliction Gaara seemed to contract in Lee's presence hit him then, harder then it had before the raccoon incident. Red colored his cheeks and he glared at the ground as if it were responsible for the odd flip flop of his stomach.

Truth be told though, he didn't mind all that much.

* * *

"Gaara! Kankuro, Temari, Baka neko, matteyo!"

Two days later and the Kazekage was off, starting on his journey back to Sunagakure. The raccoon marionette in which he had spent all those days had taken residence on his gourd, tied about the middle. Goodbyes had been said to those available, leaving only Naruto and Lee, who had run off on some errand or another, excluded.

The latter pained him like a spike through the chest, but Gaara figured it would be better this way. There would be fewer tears.

A clarion call at the gates paused the group consisting of Gaara, Temari, Kankuro, and an irritably twitching Crimson. Naruto ran at them full speed, carrying something very suspicious and orange resembling a book.

"Naruto," Gaara drawled softly in response to his friend. The brilliant haired blonde paused, grinning from ear to ear and panting a little.

'I brought you a proper present! Considering, you know…" Naruto rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly, but a sly grin lit up his eyes not moments later. "Since you and Lee finally fessed up…" He thrust out the book which Gaara took with piqued curiosity and immediately turned to run. "Ja neh, Gaara!"

Kankuro took one look at the cover and began screaming profanity after the future Hokage, picking up a rock and beaming the sprinting Naruto on the skull. Within seconds a blushing Temari had confiscated the book, older sister senses prickling despite the fact that Gaara was well old enough to read the material.

Gaara wasn't fazed, he only frowned. He'd get it back later.

They turned to leave (Crimson still snickering about 'Icha Icha' and 'the look on your face' ) when there was, again, another shout. The Kazekage turned much more readily to this one though, just a tinge of surprise to his expression.

A green blur cam sprinting down the street towards the gates, barreling past a still twitching Naruto and sliding to a stop before Gaara. A grin was painted across Lee's features, brilliant, but not in the way of overzealous. No, it was one of the rare, true grins he expressed to those he held dear.

Inwardly Gaara cursed the affliction Lee had given him as the happy expression did odd things to his stomach.

"Gaara," the Green Beast said happily, "Thank you for waiting." He neglected to mention that he'd been about to leave without a good bye. He blushed a bit, grinned. "I am sorry it took me so long Crimson-san."

Everyone shot the doctor/councilor curious looks, but she rose her hands carelessly and turned away.

"Lee?" Kankuro inquired.

"Ah, yes!" The Green Beast's grin broadened. "Tsunade informed me that Crimson-san made a request for me to escort Gaara to Suna seeing as it would be much faster and he has work to catch up on!" He finished, beaming proudly.

"Please say you got someone to distract me," Temari groaned at the prospect of being stuck on the trip with Kankuro and the red head she despised, scowling at aforementioned red head.

"Get your own," Crimson sniped in response.

"…I hate you."

Lee stepped a bit closer to Gaara listening intently for any sand. When none arose he leaned over a bit, bandaged fingers tracing over the pale cheek to brush back ruby hair. "No sand armor?"

Gaara shook his head. "There's no need to wear it right now."

The Green Beast inclined his head and made a soft noise of affirmation. Surprise lilted teal orbs as Lee's lips brushed just over his own. It was barely what one would call a kiss, but it had been there and the contact was still just as startling. No sand stirred, no raging Hyuuga fell from the sky, all that happened was a strange noise emitting from Crimson and ruby curling over his pale cheeks like wild fire.

Then Lee was upright, the only signs from him being a pink tinge to healthy, tanned skin. He knelt over and pulled off a pair of smaller-then-his-usual weights, slipping them into a pack on either hip that appeared to contain supplies as well. Up once more he, without warning, lifted Gaara bridal style gourd and all.

Gaara was very nearly almost angry with shock, yet the sand only growled, didn't strike. When he was calm seconds later the gourd began to reform, sliding out of the original shape to make a fat ring about his abdomen, marionette sprawled across his chest. He shifted a bit until he was comfortable, curled against Lee's chest.

A photo flashed. He would have to throttle his council member later.

"See you in a few days!" Lee declared before he took off in a burst of speed, Gaara cradled against him. And in truth, the red head felt more at home then he had in a long time.

* * *

"So then they fell in love and you two were born!"

"Who _are_ you lady?"

"Crimson, quit harassing children and come help me move Lee's crap!"

Rock Lee, a year later, stood holding a massive box of weights in Suna's streets. His gaze trailed over the people he cared for most of the desert city, a smile that lingered on his lips broadening upon landing on Gaara.

He would miss Konoha, certainly, but his heart lay here and he could always visit. He'd been slapped with an 'in residence ally' label and shipped off when Naruto became Hokage so he'd be associating always whether he liked it or not.

The Green Beast shifted the box and trailed after Gaara, wondering if this ever would have occurred were it not for that statue. For once he would admit to defeat to the birthday visit gone wrong.

**The End**

* * *

**OH MY GOD IT'S DONE!!!**

Finito. Fin. Owari. Complete. Friggin done. Truth be told I'm kind of sad to see it go…

I suck at fluff. I apologize T-T

I want to thank every last reviewer and reader! You all encouraged me a lot. Honestly I didn't know how this story was going to blow over and…Wow! I really hope you enjoyed this last chapter.

Please leave your thoughts to me in a review. I won't even hope for 75 but even 60 would make me grin psychotically. Above that might spawn other stories like a prequal or a sequel or…something.

Gah. Thank you all…I guess this is goodbye for now!

_-The Crimson Wing_


End file.
